Naeem's Blog

Cold Turkey: The act of giving up a habit all at once.

I've learned that one of the best ways to deal with nafsi desires has been to go cold turkey. Whether its watching TV, going to the movie theater or indulging in the viewing of sports, I have found an abrupt cessation to work the best.

Going cold turkey shows your nafs that YOU are in control and that it is but a tool at your disposal, to be subjugated and refined.

All these silly distractions have muddled my path to spiritual ecstasy. It doesn't take a genius to realize that the path which requires one to minimize food, sleep, and speech will never allow for one who has busied his senses with watching TV, movies, and sports.

And the Internet.

I need to focus my senses, which have too many neurons distracted with what the Internet has to offer.

I'm going primitive folks.

I think everyone needs to experience primitivity (look it up, it's a real word), especially in this day and age. Whether it be one week, one month, or even a year.

That being said, let's see how long my turkey stays cold. :-)

While it is definitely in vogue to publicly denounce the 'brutal actions' of the Afghan Taliban, the few who try and proffer an alternative narrative are seen as "retarded Muslims" who are intent on blindly defending the indefensible.

Why are people so digital? Analog is not so bad.

It needn't be an either/or situation.

I support them in their resistance against occupation forces. I don't support them in their attacks on civilians.

Is that so complicated?

It bears repeating that reports on Taliban atrocities must be taken with a grain of salt, especially when it's been reported that US forces are aggressively employing "strategic communications" (read disinformation) to counterweigh their losing military strategy in Afghanistan.

Like in the aftermath of the May 2009 drone bombing in the Farah province that killed almost 100 civilians:

"The U.S. military tried desperately to spin the story, initially denying that any significant civilian casualties had resulted from the air strikes. Carefully placed leaks in the media suggested that the Taliban themselves had killed dozens of innocent people with grenades to make it appear that they had been killed by U.S. bombs.That "message" failed to gain traction, and was quietly abandoned.

When doctors and public health officials began to speculate on the reasons for the horrendous burns suffered by the Farah victims, the U.S. military circulated reports that the Taliban had been known to use white phosphorous. That, too, was not substantiated." [source]

So unless you are reporting from the battlefield, please spare me the blanket denunciations against the Taliban (or any other resistance for that matter).

I prefer not to base my judgments on press releases and government officials, especially when it's in their blatant interests to obfuscate the truth.

It's understandable that the vast majority of non-Muslims would not know the difference - after all, their primary source of information (Corporate Media) chooses to overlook such 'nuances'.

But I'm more worried about us Muslims and how we're slowly falling into the same confusion.

Most of us will label our Chechen brothers fighting against Russian aggression as Mujahideen. Same with our Palestinian brothers. As long as their efforts are utilizing legitimate means, directed towards legitimate targets.

Fine.

But are we as clear in our convictions when it comes to our fellow Iraqis and Afghanis? As Western Muslims, are our perspectives affected by the fact that they are resisting American and European forces?

It's funny how so many of us were so vocal in support of the Afghani jihad when it was the Russian in the 80's, but when the same resistance is taking place against NATO forces, we've turned silent.

OK, let's say that we support our brothers in Afghanistan, as it's their right to resist foreign occupation. What then do we think of outside Muslims who travel to Afghanistan to join the resistance?

Just because these folks are constantly termed as foreign fighters linked with Al-Qaeda, are we to blindly condemn them? Or should we look upon their struggles and sacrifice as praiseworthy and admirable?

These are the questions that we all need to ponder over as we read this recent story of a group of European Muslims who traveled to Afghanistan to join the jihad.

The story chronicles the strange journey of a group of Muslims from France and Belgium. This group had no gripe with their adopted nations (as they weren't looking to carry out terrorist activity in Europe). They simply felt the need to support their brethren in Afghanistan. Of course, as the story details, their struggle was not rewarded:

"After getting ripped off in Turkey and staggering through waist-deep snow in Iran, the little band arrived in Al Qaeda's lair in Pakistan last year, ready for a triumphant reception.

"We were expecting at least a welcome for 'our brothers from Europe' and a warm atmosphere of hospitality," Walid Othmani, a 25-year-old Frenchman from Lyon, recalled during an overnight interrogation in January.

Wary of spies, suspicious Al Qaeda chiefs grilled the half-dozen Belgians and French. They charged them $1,200 each for AK-47 rifles, ammunition and grenades...Then the trainees dodged missile strikes for months. They endured disease, quarrels and boredom, huddling in cramped compounds that defied heroic images of camps full of fraternal warriors."

So I'm left wondering, should we be supporting them or denouncing them? As citizens of the West, are we to sacrifice our loyalties to our faith in order to save face in our local communities?

I guess we can always fall back on the fail-safe method of denouncing them for 'attacking civilians' and carrying out 'indiscriminate bombings', as reported to us by the occupying forces and their media henchmen.

Yeah, that would seem most safe.

[Inspired by this TalkIslam exchange]

According to the foremost leading military man in America, the Afghan Taliban (with their evil cohorts Al-Qaeda) are going to shift their operations into Pakistan. Why? Well duh! The US surge of troops in Afghanistan is going to force them over the border and into Pakistan.

Reason #2,947 for the destabilization (and inevitable failed-state status) of Pakistan.

Before we begin hearing the usual calls for denunciation and condemnation, let's put this "extremely" dangerous plot into perspective.

First, let's look past the minor detail of the ringleader getting stoned before carrying out his havoc on civilized society (read the comments at the TPM link - hilarious!).

Based on a scientifically based algorithm, I've compared recent terror plots and I'd say this latest one is a bit more dangerous than the Miami Seven who were not so close to bringing down the Sears Tower (according to the FBI, their plot was "more aspirational than operational") but not as threatening as the pizza-delivery guys in Jersey who were insidiously planning on attacking an entire US Army base by their lonesome selves.

Of course, all these jokers pale in comparison to the evilness (and ineptitude) embodied by the Ghettoist Terrorist in history.

I just read this awesome anti-teen-dating diatribe by Mohja Kahf. She compares the odd ritual of teen-dating as found in Western society to the alternative of early marriage:

"For Muslim parents to provide a nubile woman with a reliable life partner, with whom she can build a home as well as satisfy her sexual desires—someone who bears witnessed responsibility if she conceives a child, in a union nurtured by surrounding family—this is oppressive, while parents providing ill-prepared teens with the means for furtive groping amid all sorts of conflicting messages about what they are to do in this badly set-up ritual, that’s benign?"

And it reminded me of my rant on Sex Ed from two years ago:

"I would much rather have my adolescent son ask me why his wife gets upset every month or my daughter ask why her husband is so stubborn than to explain to them why their high-school peers are dating and they aren’t. I would rather have them struggle with the complexities of a marital relationship than struggle to create their own chaste space amongst their promiscuous schoolmates.

In the world I envision, Islamic sexual education would not be veiled behind social taboos nor would it be an instrument to blunt the natural urges of young adults. Rather, it would consist of teaching the adaab (etiquettes) of sexual education to couples preparing for marriage, not teenage kids worried about the next school mixer."

Yeah, I just quoted myself. I'm all about self-love.

Update: One cool feature I just discovered: While viewing the panoramic files, if you wish to capture a shot, just hit the PrintScreen button. Then open MS Paint (or MS Word, etc.) and click on Edit, then Paste. Then you can save the file and mail it your friends, pretending that you took the picture yourself!

Thanks to almiskeenah, I ran across this most beautiful website.

It's got panoramic views of the Kaaba, Prophet's Mosque, and other masjids from Saudi Arabia as well as Turkey.

In addition to that, there are views of historic sites such as Battle of Badr, Cave Hira, Topkapi Palace (Istanbul), and more.

My favorite is the special page dedicated to the beautiful Blue Mosque (more appropriately known as the Sultan Ahmed Jami).

Now you never need to visit Turkey, except maybe to taste that extremely delicious, mysteriously halal, fermented drink called Boza.

See how reading my blog just saved you a bunch of money?!

Be righteous believers.

That's what I learned from the story of Prophet Musa (as) and Khidr (as). Here are the exact verses from Sura Kahf:

"And as for that young man (killed by Khidr), his parents were [true] believers - whereas we had every reason to fear that he would bring bitter grief upon them by [his] overweening wickedness and denial of all truth: and so we desired that their Sustainer grant them in his stead [a child] of greater purity than him, and closer [to them] in loving tenderness.

And as for that wall, it belonged to two orphan boys [living] in the town, and beneath it was [buried] a treasure belonging to them [by right]. Now their father had been a righteous man, and so thy Sustainer willed it that when they come of age they should bring forth their treasure by thy Sustainer's grace." (18:80-82)

Notice how both incidents dealt with children of righteous parents.

The first case (of the child being killed by Khidr) was Allah's (swt) way of providing for the spiritual well-being of the child (which sadly meant that he be killed). The child was destined for evil and wickedness, but due to the upright character of the parents, Allah (swt) saved them (and the child as well) from such a troublesome destiny.

The second case (of the orphan children and the wall) was Allah's way of providing for the physical well-being of the children. The parents were unable to provide for the children before their untimely death, but due to their righteousness, Allah (swt) found a way for the orphans.

"And whosoever is conscious of God, He grants a way out (of difficulty), and provides for him in a manner beyond all expectation."(65:2-3)

Raising children is never an easy task. There's no science to this most difficult of responsibilities. People have written books, given lectures, held workshops, and done whatever else can be done to guide parents. But in reality, there is no fail-safe method to raising upright, model children.

So what is one to do?

I've seen the most wicked children come from the most pious of homes and vice-versa. It's truly illogical and unpredictable.

In the end, it's not us who are raising the children as much as it's Allah (swt) using us (and everything else) to raise them. If we fulfill our part of the deal by being virtuous, God-conscious servants of our Creator, all the while striving to foster a positive home environment for the children, Allah (swt) will take care of the finishing touches.

In the manner He deems most appropriate.

What do I mean by that last statement? We may conclude that our children are successes or failures based on our standards, but in reality that counts for little. In the end, success/failure is what Allah (swt) decides.

Let me finish with a real example.

Several years ago, back in my community in America, a young man (who I used to teach in Sunday School) got caught up in the wrong crowd and got involved in an extremely messy criminal situation (he was convicted of murder). He was sentenced to life in prison and needless to say, it tore apart the community.

You see, his father was one of the pillars of the community - very pious and well-respected. People failed to understand how it was possible for such a tragedy to befall such a family.

But I sincerely believe that due to the righteous actions of the father, his son was saved from a far worse fate than life in prison (think apostasy or a life full of evil). Instead, the young man is stuck in prison where he has since repented (from what I hear) and is now protected from the evil he may have wrought against himself or others.

So is he a success or a failure?

When I read the story below, I felt it was special enough to revive my Good News Post series.

The Christian Science Monitor has this excellent article covering Judge Khouloud el-Faqeeh who is the very first Qadiyah (female judge) in Palestine.

While there are many female judges all over the Muslim world, she is believed to be one of the first female judges for Shariah-based courts.

Now, I wonder if the same people who sensationalized the case of the singular Saudi judge who condoned slapping of the wife are going to overplay this story in a similar manner?

I don't think so.

I wonder why.