Circumspecte

In an authentic Hadith, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) said:  "Man is influenced by the faith of his friends. Therefore, be careful of whom you associate with." One of the distinct features of Ramadan that I have come to love is the feeling of camaraderie, of being one anther's keeper and of going out of ones way to show love and support. In my opinion, (wo)man's capacity for kindness is never more evident than during this Holy month. Its a time when complete strangers sit together in prayer shoulder to shoulder for hours and contemplate the wonders of God's creative abilities. When families who live in the same house yet have very separate lives pause for a moment and rediscover one another. When people go out of their way to lend a helping hand to the needy and orphaned in society. And perhaps, what's most beautiful, when the indescribable bond between humanity - Muslims and non-Muslims - is renewed. Over the years and during my time away from home I have experi...

Ramadan Kareem! The Holy month is here again, and started on August 1 for most of the world. This year's Ramadan is significant for me in a number of ways. Numero uno, it's my first Ramadan in 6 years with my entire family in Ghana! And by family I mean nuclear family. Previous Ramadans were spent with various 'family members' in the US, France, Senegal, and virtually. So now we're back to home base, Alhamdulilahi, and that also means there are some key differences, the least not being the fact that I actually eat properly during suhoor (dawn meal) and iftar (evening meal) thanks to mummy :) I've probably mentioned on here how every year right before Ramadan something usually pops ups to mess with my equilibrium and then the entire month is essentially spent delving within and trying to regain my internal balance. So far there has been nothing of the sort. Alhamdulilahi I'm swimming in harmony; my family and friends are close, I have an interesting job, e...

So, today's a special day in the Islamic Calendar. It's the day of Arafat - a day when all the Hajj pilgrims descend upon Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia under a state of "Ihram" (purity) and commune one on one with Allah. It's an open doorway to the heavenly chamber where gratitude, asking for forgiveness, committing oneself and praying for anything really rule supreme. Mount Arafat has a huge significance in Islam. It is believed that Adam and Eve found each other at that location after being cast out of paradise. It is also believed that Judgement Day will take place at that very mount. Perhaps, the most important thing about Mount Arafat for the world's millions of Muslims is the fact that it was on that very mountain that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) "perfected" Islam with his final sermon. For my Muslim brothers and sisters, I believe this is a great reminder about our rights and responsibilities as Muslims, and for how we should lead our lives. Fo...

All too soon, we have come to the end of another opportunity to partake in the Holy Month of Ramadan. Pending the moon sighting, there are speculations that Eid-ul-Fitr (the festival celebrating the end of Ramadan) will take place on Friday, September 10 or Saturday, September 11. Either way, Alhamdulilahi, we've made it through another Ramadan and for that we should give thanks. But that's not the purpose of this post. I'll do a recap on my Ramadan experience later. For this post I'd like to talk about the Pastor in Florida who in all his wisdom has decided to organize a "Burn a Qu'ran" Day: Rev. Terry Jones. A Meeting of Significance: September 11, 2010 Yes, Mr. Jones is a pastor in a relatively small town in Florida, and yes, he only has a congregation of 50, but his actions, or rather his proclamations, bear a lot of weight. Why? Because he has chosen two 'things' that are important to not just tens or hundreds, but millions of people: t...

Before I start, just a quick 'thank you' to Moi for reminding me that I even intended to share my Ramadan experience/lessons on here. Like you said, God sometimes speaks through people :) Okay, back to the scheduled program. Days two through five of Ramadan have been filled with so many lessons, I'm surprised I even have the energy to write this post. Unlike Day one which was essentially a physical test of my adaptation to the Senegalese sun and long hours, these three days have been a revolving door of churning out my thoughts and feelings. I keep going back and forth on this same issue, but this time it's a bit different. Actually, let me speak plainly. That was lesson number one: Say what you need to say. Speak your truth. Not THE truth, mind you. But YOUR truth. Most situations involve many truths. Hence speak YOUR truth. And allow others to speak their respective truths as well. I don't want to believe that God made life out to be this complicated, it'...

I'm tempted to agree with those who say that silence is the language of the soul, because words are not enough. I'm sitting on my bed, mac on lap, tryna think up the best way to express what I'm feeling right this moment, but I can't find the words. They don't do the feeling any justice. After a little hide and seek with the moon, Ramadan finally came upon those of us in Senegal. Others in France, Saudi Arabia and Ghana started yesterday, but we got another day to "prepare". But tell me, can you ever adequately prepare for Ramadan? Each year, it's the same, but slightly different. For me the consistency has been a calmness of mind, heart and soul that I can only call peace. I can't explain it fully, but over the past couple of years, my entire system kicks into auto-gear with the arrival of Ramadan and I just trust. Yes, there are still hopes, there are still fears, but over that month, it doesn't matter. Maybe its because of the heavenly pre...

 Inspired by a condominium of thoughts, and stylistically influenced by my interpretation of Regina Spektor's "Eet" They call it an outer body experience. And they're right, that's exactly what it is. It's like floating out in the universe, and watching the earth chug along on its axis. Like planning a speech to the very last detail, only to be tongue-tied when the grand moment arrives. Kin to doing the very thing you said you would never, ever, for the life of you do, and being achingly conscious as you're doing it. It's like being a mannequin on Fashion Ave. in NYC, oohed and aahed at, but never quite understood. -- They call it an outer body experience, but they forget the inner-body element. The fact that each is a universe onto themselves, and that's what makes living so  annoyingly complex. Eerily similar to that Grey's episode where a woman awoke during surgery and stared  down at her entrails. Unable to move, unable to scream, unab...