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The View of “Saudi Woman” on Niqab Ban

The rebellious Saudi female blogger, Saudi Woman, has applauded the ban of Niqab in France. While some of her reasoning I agree with, I still am feeling sorry for how inconsiderate she is for her Niqabi sisters.

Saudi Woman wrote that:

When I read that the ban has gone through the French parliament with an overwhelming majority, I was unexpectedly ecstatic about it. I don’t live in France and I don’t even to plan to visit anytime soon and yet it made me happy that women there don’t have a choice.

You can sense hate by just reading her happy remarks. Even if she is a Saudi woman and that she hates wearing the Niqab, she does not have the right to stand and call for the ban of Niqab even for those women who chose to wear it.

Ramadan Winners & Losers

Yes. There will be Ramadan winners and Ramadan losers.

Ramadan is an opportunity for sinners to start a new page and walk again on the straight path. It is also a chance for good Muslims to increase their good deeds. Ramadan must be viewed as a test and an opportunity rather than an unnecessary hard time.

Ramadan winners are those who:

• waited for Ramadan and wanted it to come sooner,
• wake up early before dawn to pray, read the Quran, and have Suhoor (a rich snack),
• spend the day in prayer, reading the Quran and learning about the religion,
• help in house chores,
• give charity and advise others to do so,
• go to work without complaints,
• know how to manage their time in Ramadan,
• are good behaved, and
• feel the Ramadan spirit the year long.

On the other hand, Ramadan losers are those who:

• are feeling uneasy as Ramadan approaches,
• think about the hunger and the thirst they will be enduring,
• count the remaining days of Ramadan,
• spend the day sleeping and watching TV during the night,
• cannot finish reading the Quran during Ramadan,
• do not pray other prayers in addition to the obligatory prayers,
• are aggressive in behavior,
• look angry and frustrated at work,
• always say they need more sleep and rest, and
• wish that Ramadan is not coming back again quickly.

Wishing you winning Ramadan!

Keeping WordPress.com Clean

I check WordPress.com latest posts on my dashboard to discover new bloggers. Sometimes, I open a post with a strange title, or I notice the weird name of the author, and I find some illegal content, such as pirated music, hacked software, and content with sexual themes. I simply report the blog by pressing the appropriate button on the WordPress.com toolbar found on the top.

This way, we can keep WordPress.com clean. And honestly, I like reporting blogs!

Anticipating Ramadan

Ramadan Mubarak in advance!

Ramadan, the month of patience, control, charity, love, sympathy, purification, peace, piety, and blessings is coming on August, 10th. InshAllah, I will be writing about what I do in every day of Ramadan.

An Opinion on American Islamophobia

America, the nation that celebrates freedom on July 4^th, is becoming more and more intolerant of religious freedom granted to Muslims year after year. After 9/11 attacks, Muslim Americans have become the target of verbal hate which is considered protected by freedom of speech. Muslims in America are questioned, spied on, and face discrimination at work, in the alleys, malls and in airports. Muslims worldwide have been accused of terrorism and many of them have undergone investigations simply because they are Muslims or Arabs. And that is all attributed to a group of extremist terrorists living in the Middle Ages and who are blinded by hatred and are infested with religious ignorance.

Over a billion of Muslims live today, most of whom lead normal lives. Just like Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and people of other faiths, Muslims wake up in the morning, go to work, pray, and sit down with their families. Opening the morning newspaper to read an article about a disgusting racist marches to be organized in America and a sick determination to burn copies of the Quran in mass protests, it is just plain stupid,  inconsiderate, and sad. I cannot express how I felt this morning after reading about the dangerous events and the shocking statements expressed by the Tea Party against building a Masjid near the site of the World Trade Center.

Recommended Book – The Path of Muhammad: A Book on Islamic Morals & Ethics

I recommend reading The Path of Muhammad: A Book on Islamic Morals & Ethics by Imam Birgivi. I will add it to my Wish List for future buying.

Here is a quoted description from Amazon about the book:

This is a centuries-old text by a 16th-century Turkish Sufi and scholar, Imam Birgivi. It has been translated for the first time into English by Shaykh Tosun Bayrak, who has also “interpreted” the text. Through numerous references to the Quran and the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, the book portrays the beauty and depth of the Prophet’s character and the excellence of his example for followers of God in all times and places. The Path of Muhammad is accompanied by another, shorter text, The Last Will and Testament by Imam Birgivi. Together, these two texts range through traditional Islamic views on the nature of God, revelation, angels, prophethood, religious duties, virtue, faith, mysticism, the nature of knowledge, and many more topics. From lofty considerations on, for example, the nature of evil, to earth-bound considerations on, as another example, how to spend money, Imam Birgivi’s texts always show readers how they can purify their minds, hearts, and bodies. This incredible compendium of moral and spiritual topics, all seen through the eyes of a traditional Sufi and scholar, always hearkens back to the earliest sources of the Islamic faith (i.e., the Quran and the sayings of the Prophet) in order to “remind you of your own departure from this world, and help in your salvation.”

Somehow, It Smelled Like Mango

I was preparing my favorite easy lentil soup, and while I was frying chopped parsley and garlic in olive oil and after I added a pinch of salt (not in the recipe), I noticed the familiar smell of mango coming from the pan. Not sure if I smelled it before when I did not add the salt.

Very strange.

The Greeting of Peace

When I arrive at my office I like to greet every person on my way with the greeting of peace: Peace be upon you. I wish them a good day and ask about their health and life. If they needed any sort of help, I promise them that I will assist.

Maybe some of my colleagues have noticed that I greet them even if they arrived late. But, I want them to behave like me, so when they arrive they greet every single person without ignoring any one.

I do not like to be mean, but there are some of my colleagues who come and greet some people and they ignore others. At work, we are like a community. We help each other, we sympathize, we share sweets, and we listen to each other’s concerns. A greeting can do a lot of things. It shows that you are concerned about others and that you have become a member of their group, like a family.

The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said:

The most miserable and most incompetent of men are those who cannot even pray. And the stingiest of men are those who do not greet others when they see them.

(Tabarani, Abu Hurayrah)

A Reader or Not

Yesterday, I put three labels on the entrance door for the department I am currently working in. The labels were written in both Arabic and English. These were “Pull”, “Push”, and an announcement for the current working hours. The door has two sides, one of which is locked so it cannot be pushed or pulled, and here is the problem we were facing: when someone pushed the locked side of the door, they usually pushed it with force. You can imagine the noise we heard many times during the day because of this.

What I was thinking after putting the labels is that maybe a few will read it, or even notice it. I am living in a community where reading is of no interest among the majority of the people. I thought that those who will miss reading it either do not like reading, usually look at the ground while walking, are busy with something, or they have no bit of curiosity.

I like to read the notices and memos posted on the walls. I like to read the newspaper from back to back. I enjoy reading the small advertisements hidden between the long articles. I like to read blogs of interest on WordPress.com and share my thoughts and ideas with the users. Indeed, I have been addicted to blogging.

Oh! You know what, while I was typing the last words in the previous paragraph (in a Microsoft Word document at work), someone missed reading the labels. I cannot say he/she is not a reader because I could not see, but maybe that person was looking at the watch or was talking, I am not sure. But, I think that those who pay attention to written words are those who like reading and they have no problem with it.

By the way, I cannot say that I am a 100% avid reader. My problem is that I do not have the time to open a book.

The Holocaust in Palestine

Two Holocausts:

Can I Become An Empress, Please?

I was reading webnerbob’s post about new Earth-like planets being discovered, and I thought:

If there are more than 100 Earths, and more to be discovered, why not a country, such as “Israel” go to one of these Earths and claim it as its? So, poor Palestinians can go back to their country and continue to live like they used to?

I read a similar thought by some famous person who I cannot remember.

And I also thought:

Then, maybe I can become an Empress of one of those new Earths? Believe me! I will become a good Empress!

I am not sure how those planets are similar to our Earth, but what will happen in the future if they were really habitable? Will we see mass migrations into the space? Who will migrate and who will prefer to stay on Earth? Will there be a need to leave our planet?

This can be illustrated in a good science fiction book.