As If I Need Another Blog!

My Blog Via the System Access Mobile Network
Will probably use this to do more audio blogging, another “audio scrapbook” if you will. Because ti’s very easy to record an audio post there and the sound quality is very good.

Qur’an Reading

2:189
Sahih International: They ask you, [O Muhammad], about the new moons. Say, “They are measurements of time for the people and for Hajj.” And it is not righteousness to enter houses from the back, but righteousness is [in] one who fears Allah. And enter houses from their doors. And fear Allah that you may succeed.
Shakir: They ask you concerning the new moon. Say: They are times appointed for (the benefit of) men, and (for) the pilgrimage; and it is not righteousness that you should enter the houses at their backs, but righteousness is this that one should guard (against evil); and go into the houses by their doors and be careful (of your duty) to Allah, that you may be successful.

2:252
Sahih International: These are the verses of Allah which We recite to you, [O Muhammad], in truth. And indeed, you are from among the messengers.
Shakir: These are the communications of Allah: We recite them to you with truth; and most surely you are (one) of the messengers.
Sahih International: Those messengers – some of them We caused to exceed others. Among them were those to whom Allah spoke, and He raised some of them in degree. And We gave Jesus, the Son of Mary, clear proofs, and We supported him with the Pure Spirit. If Allah had willed, those [generations] succeeding them would not have fought each other after the clear proofs had come to them. But they differed, and some of them believed and some of them disbelieved. And if Allah had willed, they would not have fought each other, but Allah does what He intends.
Shakir: We have made some of these messengers to excel the others among them are they to whom Allah spoke, and some of them He exalted by (many degrees of) rank; and We gave clear miracles to Isa son of Marium, and strengthened him with the holy spirit. And if Allah had pleased, those after them would not have fought one with another after clear arguments had come to them, but they disagreed; so there were some of them who believed and others who denied; and if Allah had pleased they would not have fought one with another, but Allah brings about what He intends.

2:255
Sahih International: Allah – there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.
Shakir: Allah is He besides Whom there is no god, the Everliving, the Self-subsisting by Whom all subsist; slumber does not overtake Him nor sleep; whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth is His; who is he that can intercede with Him but by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them, and they cannot comprehend anything out of His knowledge except what He pleases, His knowledge extends over the heavens and the earth, and the preservation of them both tires Him not, and He is the Most High, the Great.

Sahih International: There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion. The right course has become clear from the wrong. So whoever disbelieves in Taghut and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy handhold with no break in it. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
Shakir: There is no compulsion in religion; truly the right way has become clearly distinct from error; therefore, whoever disbelieves in the Shaitan and believes in Allah he indeed has laid hold on the firmest handle, which shall not break off, and Allah is Hearing, Knowing.

Qur’an

Qur’an 2:183
Sahih International
: O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous -
Shakir
: O you who believe! fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may guard (against evil).

2:184
Sahih International
: [Fasting for] a limited number of days. So whoever among you is ill or on a journey [during them] – then an equal number of days [are to be made up]. And upon those who are able [to fast, but with hardship] – a ransom [as substitute] of feeding a poor person [each day]. And whoever volunteers excess – it is better for him. But to fast is best for you, if you only knew.
Shakir
: For a certain number of days; but whoever among you is sick or on a journey, then (he shall fast) a (like) number of other days; and those who are not able to do it may effect a redemption by feeding a poor man; so whoever does good spontaneously it is better for him; and that you fast is better for you if you know.

2:185
Sahih International
: The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur’an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey – then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship and [wants] for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which He has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful.
Shakir
: The month of Ramazan is that in which the Quran was revealed, a guidance to men and clear proofs of the guidance and the distinction; therefore whoever of you is present in the month, he shall fast therein, and whoever is sick or upon a journey, then (he shall fast) a (like) number of other days; Allah desires ease for you, and He does not desire for you difficulty, and (He desires) that you should complete the number and that you should exalt the greatness of Allah for His having guided you and that you may give thanks.
2:187
Sahih International
: It has been made permissible for you the night preceding fasting to go to your wives [for sexual relations]. They are clothing for you and you are clothing for them. Allah knows that you used to deceive yourselves, so He accepted your repentance and forgave you. So now, have relations with them and seek that which Allah has decreed for you. And eat and drink until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct to you from the black thread [of night]. Then complete the fast until the sunset. And do not have relations with them as long as you are staying for worship in the mosques. These are the limits [set by] Allah , so do not approach them. Thus does Allah make clear His ordinances to the people that they may become righteous.
Shakir
: It is made lawful to you to go into your wives on the night of the fast; they are an apparel for you and you are an apparel for them; Allah knew that you acted unfaithfully to yourselves, so He has turned to you (mercifully) and removed from you (this burden); so now be in contact with them and seek what Allah has ordained for you, and eat and drink until the whiteness of the day becomes distinct from the blackness of the night at dawn, then complete the fast till night, and have not contact with them while you keep to themosques; these are the limits of Allah, so do not go near them. Thus does Allah make clear His communications for men that they may guard (against evil).

Qur’an 2:177

From the Shakir translation:

“… : It is not righteousness that you turn your faces towards the East and the West, but righteousness is this that one should believe in Allah and the last day and the angels and the Book and the prophets, and give away wealth out of love for Him to the near of kin and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and the beggars and for (the emancipation of) the captives, and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate; and the performers of their promise when they make a promise, and the patient in distress and affliction and in time of conflicts– these are they who are true (to themselves) and these are they who guard (against evil).
… “

Ramadan Blogging

Assalamu alaikum, I didn’t want to commit to any specific Ramadan blogging this year, because I was fairly sure that I’d most likely not be able to follow through with it. i.e., saying I was going to do a daily Ramadan journal or something like that, and then not following through with it. So, I’m just going to blog as it comes to me.

The theme for me this month seems to be to not let things get on my nerves, that normally would get on my nerves or upset me, or doing my best to realize that Allah knows my intentions so that, say, if I go to the masjid and hardly anyone talks to me, that I’m talked around and not to, that Alhamdulillah, I’m there to break fast with other Muslims, to pray in congregation, and earn the reward, Inshallah, of praying taraweh and listening to the recitation of the Qur’an. And that I can’t try to guess anyone else’s intentions or get upset at how people react to me or treat me. Because a few things have happened since the start of Ramadan, that normally would have gotten me very upset, or at the least, just a tad bit irritated. And Alhamdulillah, I was able to just let them roll right off me and even laugh a little too.

The first incident was after the moon was sighted and Ramadan was confirmed to be starting on Saturday, August 22nd, I was on a chat line, conducted by former students of the school I used to attend, from kindergarten all the way up through high school. Anyway, I’d mentioned that Ramadan “was starting tomorrow”, and as I am the only Muslim on the chat line, I proceeded to do my best, however awful of a job I think it was (lol), to explain to them what Ramadan was, what Muslims must do during this month, and what this month means to me and how the month “recharges my spiritual batteries”, if you will. Now, I’m not sure what I said, perhaps talking about Islam and Ramadan bothers people or something, but all of a sudden, a whole handful of people left the chat line, some announced they were leaving, and others just hung up. Now, I can’t say if it was because of me getting all emotional about Ramadan, etc., or not, maybe it wasn’t, and it most likely wasn’t. However, normally an incident like this would have made me very self-conscious, very upset, I would have felt weird, strange, embarrassed, afraid that I’d offended someone. However, this time, I didn’t feel any of these things, I figured if people were that offended, or that scared of me, or that uncomfortable with hearing the words “Islam” and “ramadan” and “Muslim” in a short space of time, that was on them not me. I’m passed apologizing for, or being afraid of, or feeling that I must cover up who I am as a Muslim. I have been Muslim for just about 9 or so years now, so it’s really time that I get over that already. And anyway, it’s not me who “has the problem” as it were, I am about to start the most holy, most spiritually enriching time for me, a time that I consider to be a blessing to see come around again, so, honestly, it’s not me who has the problem! If Christians can talk about Christmas, etc., I see no reason why I can’t gush about Ramadan and the Eids. And this is assuming that anyone even had a problem at all in the first place. If they didn’t, great and Alhamdulillah, and if they did, well, that’s on them, and I’ll leave it alone.

The second thing that happened to me was that I was in the masjid on Saturday night, getting ready to break fast, actually, I think I’d broken my fast and we were waiting to go and eat the iftar meal. I was sitting on the floor of the prayer area, people were talking around me, to each other, but not to me specifically. Nor ordinarily, this really would have bothered me, for a variety of reasons. Most notably being treated like I wasn’t even there, or like people could not approach me and talk to me as an equal and normal person, or if they did, it would have been done in the way an adult would talk to a child. But this time it didn’t bother me. Again, I thought of my intentions for being there, and I made dua that Allah would reward me accordingly, I took the time given to me by my own solitude in a room full of people to reflect on this month and Allah’s blessings to me, and didn’t pay any mind to whether or not anyone was speaking to me or not. And it was at that time that a kind sister came up to me with a very full plate of tasty iftar food, Mashallah!

And on that same evening, another thing happened to me that I’m still reflecting on and trying to process. A group of kids sat down and started talking to me. They asked me why I was blind, and I told them how and why. And then one of them asked me where I was from, I told them I was from America, then they asked me if I was a Muslim, I said yes, then one of them whispered to the other to ask me if I eat pork, I heard them and told them no I didn’t, why would I eat pork if I was a Muslim, and then one of them said “but you’re an American”, and I told them “yeah, I may be an American but I’m a Muslim too, so why would I eat pork”. They also asked me if I fasted, I told them that I did, I explained that I was of sound mind, and that just because I was blind, that that was not a good enough of an excuse for me not to fast. But the whole gist of the conversation was that they could not grasp the fact that I could be an American and a Muslim at the same time, that the two were mutually exclusive concepts and the tone of their voices when they said “American”, well, it was like one couldn’t be a Muslim and an American or to them an American was necessarily a non-Muslim and that if one was a Muslim one couldn’t be American. This was not illustrated more clearly than when one kid in the same group asked the other “where are you from”, and the other child replied “I’m from America, I’m an American”, and the other child said “no you’re not, where are you really from, I mean really”, and the other child, I could hear her kinda put her hands over her face and say “Palestine”, and I think she tried to explain that she was an American and a Muslim both and the other child seemed to suggest, though I can’t remember the exact wordage now, that she couldn’t be both. Instead of feeling angry or upset at this, I felt sad, especially for the little girl who got shot down for merely suggesting that she was both an American and a Muslim. I won’t even go into where these kids got these kinds of messages, I just did my best to explain that one could, in fact, be an American and a Muslim at the same time, and that I was proof of this fact. Whether they got the message or not, not to mention what some of the adults may or seem to think of American Muslims who attend this masjid (i.e., whether they are Muslim or not “really”), based solely on what the kids were saying, I won’t even get into. All I can do is make dua, and all I can do is answer for myself and my own actions. If people think that I’m not Muslim enough or not Muslim at all simply because I’m an American, well, that’s on them, and Allah alone knows the truth. Besides, I didn’t want any of my own rewards, Inshallah, to be diminished because I got angry or upset or accused anyone unjustly, even if it was only in my own heart and mind.

And anyway, I was too excited and happy that I actually was learning my way around the masjid, and impressing the sisters while doing it, because I just got up and found the bathroom and wudu area on my own, that I just got up and took my cane and explored the building, without asking for anyone’s help or permission, and when the sisters asked me if I needed anything and I said no, they actually left me alone Mashallah to explore on my own. I remember thinking about how my mother used to say that the squeaky wheel gets the grease and how if you sit and wait around for someone else to do something for you, it probably won’t get done, and that you have to learn to do things for yourself because there might not be anyone around to do them for you. The thing is, I had all of these preconceived notions, that no one would talk to me, that I’d be treated differently, that I’d not be “allowed” to get up and explore, because I was “blind” and incapable of doing things for myself, or *shudder* I may even accidentally stray into the “men’s area” or something. And most of the time, I might have been right about all of these suppositions, however, in this instance, I was not. And I felt so happy that I’d just gotten up and did something, even if it was as simple as exploring the layout of my new masjid. the compliments I got from the few sisters who’d remained for Isha and Taraweh gave me a sense of, well, I don’t want to use the word “pride” but a sense of vindication that perhaps to them, blind people were capable after all. I wondered if the fact that the imam we have leading the taraweh prayers this month is himself blind had anything to do with how I was treated but again, Allah alone knows best, and I don’t want to pretend to speak for anyone else’s actions but my own.

See that’s the thing, you can spend all day brooding about what others might think of you or what others might say about you, or how others might perceive you, but at the end of the day, you can’t answer for “them”, all you can answer for, all you’ll be held accountable for by Allah on the Day of Judgment is what you yourself said and did. And I’m not sure why it took me so long to fully and totally grasp this concept to the point that I could actually learn to live it and make it a part of my life and not do the “I know it’s true but”… And then proceed to allow myself to get angry, upset, to wallow in my own self-pity, as I like to say, and let what they “did to me” affect me in such a profound and almost always negative way. Because all of the anger, all of the negativity, it’s not oging to affect “them” usually, but it would instead affect me! So why let it affect me in such a negative way, to the point that it ruins my day, or raises my blood pressure, or lowers my blood sugar, or otherwise affects me negatively both physically and mentally. Especially when usually said anger isn’t going to help me at all.

One of My Favorite TV Shows

I seem to remember my mom watching this and I’ve seen reruns of it when AandE used to show it when I was in high school. I remember watching it the night of my first eye surgery lol.

The Sound of a Waning Florida Thunderstorm

The Sound of a Waning Florida Thunderstorm « Ginny’s Audio Scrapbook

Ramadan Mubarak!

Assalamu alaikum… wow! That was early, Mashallah, the Chicago Hilal Committee, HilalSighting.org, and the Hilal Committee of Metropolitan Toronto have all declared Ramadan to be tomorrow, August 22! They state that the moon was sighted in various places in North America, Mashallah, so Ramadan Mubarak to all! And as I was writing this post, CrescentWatch.org, and IslamicMoon.com have also confirmed that Ramadan is starting tomorrow Mashallah! I feel like jumping up and down because I’m starting with my local community this year, Mashallah!

So anyway, Moonsighting.com posted an interesting article, regarding moon sighting/the start of Islamic months in Saudi.

And an interesting article linked from Moonsighting.com’s Ramadan page:

Saudi Muslim Scholars and Astronomers to Reach Consensus – Asharq Al-Awsat Click here
It appears, that the Beginning of Ramadan on August 22 in Saudi Arbia is the result of that.

In case article didn’t link properly it is here.

So Ramadan Mubarak All!

May Allah give us all the strength to amke the most of this blessed month Inshallah.

Ramadan Mubarak! *updated*

Updated at 7:30 AM 08/21/2009

From MR’s Blog

Wanted to post this earlier but was at work… He’s got the run-down (so far) the countries starting today and those starting Saturday.

I was surprised to see Turkey starting today, based on calculations (and it seems many if not all of the Balkan countries are following them). I seem to recall in the past that they all followed Saudi Arabia along with most of the middle East. Libya is starting tomorrow (based on calculation but I think they’ve always done that). And Nigeria is using naked eye sighting with astronomical data as an aid (as in years past they’ve had notoriously “early” moon sightings). Also, as an update (as I’m updating at 7 in the morning on 08/21/2009 and now “tomorrow” is “today” *lol*), according to this link, some are doing Ramadan based on moon sighting (and not calculation) on today 08/21/2009, although that fact is not apparent via the link as far as I could tell, although the friend who forwarded this to me told me as much, and also told me that this group sight the moon every month, the gist being that not everyone is starting tomorrow based solely on calculations alone, as I’d previously stated, but some are starting based on sighting and some based on the criteria of “possibility of sighting via telescope somewhere in the world”.

See Moonsighting.com’s Ramadan page, and www.icoproject.org for more info.

And I’m sure that MR will keep updating his site Inshallah, also www.crescentwatch.org has updated their page with a Ramadan statement.

My local community masjid, according to their website is starting tomorrow 08/22/2009, and my husband says he’s following them. I’m awaiting moon sighting reports for the USA (and Caribbean) for tonight.
Inshallah, we’ll see what happens.

Islamic Center of Polk County

Assalamu alaikum, according to my local masjid’s website Ramadan starts 08/22/2009, now wouldn’t it be cool if most of the US started on the same day!?

Inshallah…

Islamic Center of Polk County

Ouch!

Assalamu alaikum, well, on the way home, it was just pouring down rain! Well, we got home, and my husband dropped me off so he could go back to work. I ran for the door, and when I opened the door and put my first foot inside, it slid out from under me, due to the floor being wet from my shoes. The doormat had somehow gotten pushed away from the door so when I stepped into the house, it was tile floor I hit, and let me tell you, tiled floor is slick! So one leg went out from under me, and at the same time my hand was holding on the door to try to keep from falling, so as I was falling, the door was slammed into my other leg! Ouch! So now, my butt’s sore, lol, and my right leg has huge bruises both in the front and the back, where it’d gotten caught in the door.

Alhamdulillah, nothing seems to be broken and there’s no bleeding, I’m just pretty sore, and I’m sure that’ll get worse. I’m just glad I am working from home tomorrow and don’t have to walk too much.

It was just really weird, it was kind like in slow motion how it happened, just all of a sudden, I was sliding and on the floor! And Chloe just stood there and was licking my face as if to say “Are you OK?” She seemed just as startled and stunned as I was.

But I’m fine, Alhamdulillah! Just sore as I said earlier.

Not Your Normal Moon Fighting Post

From MoonSighting.com

New Moon is on August 20, 2009 (Thursday) at 10:01 UT. This moon can not be seen in any continent. There is a small chance to see only in Polynesian Islands on August 20. On August 21, it is very difficult to see in Europe and Canada. It can be seen with difficulty in India, Pakistan, Middle East, and Northern Africa. On August 21, it can be easily seen in Australia, most Africa, and Americas.

There would have been a time where I’d probably have said something like “just watch, Saudi will go and say that someone has sighted the moon on 08/20/2009 and Ramadan will start on 08/21/2009 for many people around the world, then where will the pontificating about the “calculations” be then”? I mean the “calculations are sufficient” crowd seems to want to say that those who say that the moon must be actually sighted with the naked eye, and that calculations can at most be used as merely to confirm or reject said sighting, are just a bunch of backward Muslims who don’t want to get with the program of “facilitating ease for the Muslims”, “modernity”, and modern science. And I find that sentiment to be very disrespectful and arrogant.

I think about how Islam is supposed to be the “middle way” and I can’t see how using “science” in, say, negating a sighting if all of the computers (I mean, some say that the computers can be wrong, etc., or the calculations can be wrong, but do you mean to tell me that all of the calculations, and all of the computers are wrong?), and even if that were the case, again, we’re talking about sighting a crescent moon, not the new moon (which is dark, and the computers can’t be wrong about that). Or, the same astronomical info could be used to confirm a sighting too. I seem to recall a few months ago, all of the “astronomical information” suggesting that sighting the moon would have been nearly impossible on a given evening, yet, enough people sighted the moon for their to be enough certainty needed (by those who know these things) to start the next month. So I’m not just saying that “science should be used to tell people they’re wrong” or anything like that, it should merely be used as a guide, not the end all be all. But anyway, if Islam is the middle way, and astronomers have known for centuries how to plot the course of the moon, as well as other bodies in the sky, then why not use what we know, in confirming or negating the sighting of the Hilal? Especially in today’s modern world, where many things “pollute the sky”, as it were, ie., airplanes, city lights, those same city lights reflecting off of things, etc. So, if out of thousands (if not millions) of moon watchers, only a handful of people come and say “hey we saw the moon), can this be enough of a certainty to start any Islamic month, especially one with as much significance and importance as the month of Ramadan? And especially given the fact that those sightings, especially if they are sighted in an urban environment, or by inexperienced moon sighters, may not necessarily be accurate? Notice, I didn’t say that “they were lying”, and I’ve never said that, nor would I ever. I truly feel that if someone says they saw the moon, they truly believe in their heart that they’ve seen it! there is a difference between “lying” and “just plain being wrong”.

And I think if we were in a different time and place, where people observed the different phenomena of nature, on a regular basis, and knew how to tell the movements of the moon, stars, etc., then if some people said they saw the moon, then we could say “yes they saw the moon”, but unfortunately, imho, we do not live in that time and we don’t live in that place!

For me, we’re not just talking about a “difference of opinion”, or an “academic debate”, we’re talking about neglecting a Sunnah, and it seems, in my reading and limited experience, this is being done by many who ordinarily would not “neglect a Sunnah” or who would generally try to follow the Sunnah scrupulously, so why is it that sighting the moon should be any different?

Not only this, at least in Maliki fiqh, from my very limited classes, and equally very limited reading of Maliki fiqh texts, even when you’re talking about prayers, one doesn’t talk in “prayer times” as they relate to time on a clock, but rather the movement and position of the sun in determining the times of prayer. I’d not think that anyone, or I’d hope not anyway, would break their fast if the sun still had not set, just because the prayer calendar said that Maghrib was at 8:00 PM would they? Now, I have a prayer times program on my computer, and as with the astronomical calculations and moon visibility info, I use it merely as a guide, to give me an idea of the times for prayer. And because I can’t see the sun, I add a few minutes of “safety” to what is showing on my prayer schedule, so that I’m sure I’m praying within the proper time. Why shouldn’t it be the same for the moon?

If the visibility chart says that it will be almost impossible for the moon to be seen on the 29th of a given month, and out of thousands of moon watchers, only a handful see the moon? And this brings me to another fiqh principle, that is (and I’m paraphrasing here) that certainty can’t be removed by doubt. And if only a handful of people say they saw the moon, at a time when it should not have been visible, according to all that we know, and yet thousands of people looking for the same thing in the same place did not see it, then I’d think that there’d be enough of a doubt there for those in charge of these things to not feel comfortable in starting the month, or, well, perhaps that is what the scholars/leaders are thinking when they make their decisions. Not to mention the just-remembered things like the position of the object that the handful of people thought was the moon, what it looked like, how long it stayed in the sky, when it appeared, etc. Because just because something pops out of the sky just after sunset, or maybe it was hours after sunset, doesn’t mean it is the moon.

I mean, let’s just say I get my sight back tomorrow, and I walk outside on Thursday night (the 29th of Sha’ban for those following the Ummul Qura calendar) and I think I saw a crescent, but I go and tell someone who has been watching for the moon a lot longer than me, who would know what a new crescent would look like, where it should be in the sky, etc., and let’s just say they gently were to tell me that I didn’t see a crescent, but some light somewhere reflecting off of a cloud, or something like that. They’re not telling me I’m lying, they’re telling me that I did not, as far as they can tell, see the moon. I don’t understand why that’s such a hard thing to understand. People can make mistakes, it happens all of the time.

Now, however, whether or not I should start or end my fasting based on the fact that I feel in my heart and would swear up and down that I saw the moon, is an issue that I don’t know about and I don’t even want to go there.

I’m kind of swerving off topic, but my point is this… We’re throwing away following the Sunnah of sighting the moon, in favor of “technology”, and “making things easier”, and I, as an admitted layperson, and as someone who’s knowledge of this subject comes only from what I’ve read, from people hugely more knowledgeable than myself, can’t be comfortable with that. Thus, I can’t be comfortable with following a country/organization that either says that mere calculation is enough, or that they’ll use calculation for all of the year except for Ramadan, Shawwal and Dhul Hijja, especially when my limited understanding is that *all* of the months should be started and ended based on naked eye sighting, and not just the three I listed above.

And the way I look at it is that the proprietors of moonsighting.com, IslamicMoon.com, Crescentwatch.org, and all of the myriad of other moon sighting portals on the net, nor my local community or masjid, nor even my friends, family, or husband will be held responsible or bare the burden of my fasting and acts of worship during this month, or any month for that matter. It will be solely me, who will be rewarded accordingly or not, Inshallah.

And it’s really funny that this “moment of clarity” didn’t hit me when I myself, admittedly, held the same opinion of “local/regional moon sighting”, but however coming from a position of arrogance and haughtiness from my own side. And the “clarity” came from the quote from a previous post, from IslamicMoon.com, where the site author said that “fasting a day of Ramadan is fard, the Eid prayer is merely a Sunnah”, or something to that affect, and we all know that fard takes precedence over a sunnah. And the lightbulb just flicked on in my head, and all of a sudden, the doubt and uncertainty was removed, and my “but I gotta follow the community”, etc., sentiment didn’t hold as much water.

And I’m not going to launch in to a “the community is wrong” diatribe, they will, Inshallah, make the best decision for the community, that they feel is correct, based on the knowledge and info that they have, and May Allah reward all of us for our striving to please Him, and forgiveness for our sins and wrong-doing. However, if my community leaders decide to follow ISNA or Saudi this year, I just can’t in good conscience follow them. And it’s not because I think they’re “wrong”, I’ll leave that to others to make that call, it’s just that they follow a different opinion, one that I can’t say I’m comfortable with, based on my very limited understanding. And I’m OK with that. I don’t feel the need to try to “convince” anyone, my argumentative nature isn’t rising up, demanding (even if only in my own mind) that people listen to me and follow me just ’cause I think I’m right.

And I think that is why I screamed so loudly, and blogged about this so much in the past! Because I wanted to be noticed, I wanted to show how “right” I was and how “wrong” everyone else was. And maybe the lingering doubt was Allah’s way of telling me that my screaming and yelling and arrogance was convincing no one, not even myself, though Allah knows best. I mean, how many times did I say something like “well I just think I’ll give up and celebrate with the community” (and all the while petulantly having a picture in my head of me stomping off angrily into a corner to pout). I wasn’t going to “follow the community” because I had any real sense of “wanting to leave it to the leaders” or “following the community for the sake of unity and to not create fitnah”, but I think I was just saying that as a way of once again being a baby about the whole thing, being mad because “the community wasn’t doing what I thought it should be doing”. Oh, on some level, I think I really did want to just go with the tide and follow the community, yet the little temper-tantrum-throwing child inside of me would not let me do that, it kept wanting to say “I’m right! I’m right! I’m right! And You just wont’ listen to me! Waaaa! Waaaa! Waaa!” (Insert image of me laying on the floor kicking and screaming here)

And I can’t tell you how, hmmm, I just can’t find the words for it, to go from a position of arrogance and petulance to a position of “I’m doing this because I want to please Allah, I love Him and I love our Messenger Muhammad (sall allahu alaihi wa salam), and I want to do what is pleasing to Allah and I want to follow the Sunnah of our Beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). And I can’t tell you how different it feels to come from that position! And how this has, well, I’d almost say caused a new spiritual awareness, or re-awakened a new spiritual awareness of myself, that I’m not sure I had before, or that got bogged down by my nafs insistence on being “right”. And it pretty much happened in the time it took me to write this (and this is why the article starts out with the same-old, same-old, tired moon sighting argument once again, etc.), and then morphs into, well, what the article turned out to be. Although I’d also say that I had to reassert my position so I could lay the ground work for where I was going with this article.

So… Having said all of this (and Inshallah not making a fool of myself in the process), I wish everyone a Ramadan Mubarak in advance (no matter when you start it, and I’ll probably post another “Ramadan Mubarak” message once Ramadan actually starts).

More Moon Bits…

From IslamicMoon.com:

Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr 2009 Dates

In North America, insha-Allah Ramadan will begin on Sat. August 22 (Some possibility of sighting a Hilal on Friday in Miami, Houston, Phoenix, San Diego, etc., but NONE in Canada) or Sunday, August 23 (Certain visibility all over US and Canada).

For Ramadan 2009, ISNA Fiqh Council date is August 22, and for Eid al-Fitr Sep. 20, 2009. These dates are based on ISNA’s latest policy of “Follow officially announced Saudi dates.” ISNA has finally abandoned the Qur’anic Hilal – a moon seen anywhere in North America. The decision was taken after FC’s Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Shah wrote:

“My argument is that precise authentic astronomical calculations about the birth of new moon

are sufficient of a ground to affirm Islamic lunar months.”

“… calculations about the birth of Moon are universally accepted. They are not Zanni but Qatai’

(categorical) in Usul al-Fiqh’s terminology

Astronomers CALCULATE the “birth” of the New Moon and the length of the lunar months in five different ways:

a) Draconic (node to node): 27 days 05 hours 05 min 35.9 seconds; b) Tropical (equinox to equinox): 27 days 07h 43 m 4.7s.; c) Sidereal (fixed star to fixed star): 27 days 07h 43m 11.6 s; d) Anomalistic (perigee to perigee):27day 13h 18m 33.1s, and e) Synodical: (New Moon to New Moon): 29 d 12h 44m 02.9s

Dr. Zulfiqar and ISNA should pick which one of these *precise authentic astronomical calculations*is for Islamic dates? Obviously, all five are Qata’I, but they also confirm that:

1. The New Moon (conjunction) occurs at different times in 24 hours of a day and night; and

2. Astronomical lunar month varies from 27days+fraction to 29 days+fraction (never full 29 or 30 days)

Like Shakir, Qaradawi, etc. Dr. Zulfiqar also claims: “… birth of new moon are sufficient of a ground to affirm Islamic lunar months.” Let us see what is wrong with these faulty assumptions.

Local Islamic Dates

The earth is a globe, not a flat field. “Time” is divided into dates, months, years, etc. The first date that begins the month is counted from a fixed point of time and a fixed space. The “time” of the earliest visible moon (Hilal) determines:

1. The first date of the month;

2. The beginning of a new lunar month, (and the end of the current month); and

3. The duration of the month (29 or 30 days);

The earliest “local” visibility curve on the globe determines the initial geographical points from where the first lunar date is to be counted.

For more than two thousand years, the Babylonians, the Jews (Jerusalem), the Hindus (Ujjain) and other users of lunar calendars knew the necessity of a “time” and “place” (a lunar dateline) for any calculation of lunar calendar dates.

For Islamic date, and month crescent moons (Ahilla 2:189) always determined the starting point of “time” as well as “space” (the eastern-most location where a moon was first seen).

In 2006, ISNA Fiqh Council accepted its expert Br. Khalid Shaukat’s spoof that the Islamic month begins from “the New Moon BEFORE 12:00 Noon GMT.” It proved Fiqh Council’s lack of understanding of the “time” and “space” requirements for any calendar.

In 2008, ISNA finally discarded “12Noon GMT” rule to replace it with the Saudi dates for North America.

Obviously, ISNA Fuqaha, including Dr. Zulfiqar, and its astronomical expert Br. Khalid Shaukat have no idea why the “New Moon” cannot “affirm the Islamic month”, and Makkah as the geographical location cannot determine a lunar calendar date for all the Muslims?

“Visibility Not Needed”

Dr. Zulfiqar twisted Fiqhi arguments to make the most bizarre claim: Islamic dates do not require “Ahilla” of the Qur’an because they are “Zanni.” Instead, the Qata’i calculation of the New Moon fixes the beginning time of an Islamic month. What is wrong with discarding the Hilal? Egyptians did it in 1966 and Saudi’s joined them since 1971.

You discard Ahilla and you are left with nothing to count the Islamic date and month. NO HILAL THEN NO ISLAMIC DATE or MONTH

N.B. Please look for Hilal of Ramadan on August 21 and 22 and call 607-277-6706 if and when you see one.

——————————————————————————–

Now to be honest with you, I don’t understand exactly what the above is saying, except that “ISNA is wrong”, and something about “time and place not being taken into account by ISNA and other organizations”. Maybe someone could read this and try to explain this further to me. But thought I’d post anyway for the benefit of my readers.

Breaking News: NIA Officer Says Gov’t Issues New List of 44 Wanted Gambians to Immigration Posts

Which pretty much means if theygo back to The Gambia, they’ll be arrested…

Obviously…

And I was intrigued to see the heading “foreign nationals”, hmmm, so it seems “the list” might not be limited to Gambians only…

And yes, people I know are on “the list”.

My first reaction was one of concern, and now that it’s early in the morning, and I’m still tired as I’m still not sleeping normally/well, I’m just wanting to laugh sarcastically, I mean, you’ve got to be kidding me! Arrest these people for what?

It’s really laughable.

Though not ’cause going back home / to The Gambia could get you arrested, imprisoned, tortured, “disappeared” and/or killed, so this isn’t a laughing matter. But sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying or letting your feelings of disgust and anger and concern/worry get the better of you.

I was surprised not to see other online Gambian media covering this. But we’ll see.

And that’s all I have to say on the matter, and Alhamdulillah, and now I’m hitting send, because I wanna say more but what more is there to say? And my brain just isn’t moving very fast at the moment.

Senegambia News: Breaking News: NIA Officer Says Gov’t Issues New List of 44 Wanted Gambians to Immigration Posts

Today’s Track

All right, the final track of the evening, and I needed something slow, lol. So this track is an old school track, from an R&B group called Intro, with a remake of Stevie Wonder’s “Ribbon in the Sky”, however this is the remix version, not the version that’s on the album.

I remember when I heard it on the radio, I called the radio station and asked where I could get it and was told “Oh it’s a radio-only release you can’t buy it”. Ha! Wish I could find that guy now and tell him that I found it on YouTube for Free! lol.

Today’s Track

All right, found the Thione Seck I wanted but be forewarned, the volume is very low, so if you have any other kind of computer sounds going on just be careful not to blast yourself out of the room you’re in with the sound.

And btw, if you listen long enough, you’ll actually hear him singing in a bit of English, though not sure if it has anything to do with the rest of the song, will have to investigate that further lol.

And without further adieux…

BTW, he sounds a lot better than some artists who try to sing in English and you can clearly tell they don’t have command of it. And they don’t sound as good singing in English as they do in their native language, and it’s always painful for me to hear, makes me want to tell them to just go back to singing in the language they are comfortable with. And why do people just drop a few lines of English in a song? I don’t get that.

Today’s Track

Assalamu alaikum, yeah, today’s track is tecnically a “gospel” song, but there are no overt references to Jesus, and I like the message, and well, I’m taking the “take the good and leave the bad” approach. Besides, it’s sure better than a lot of the stuff that’s out there. And I really like this remix of the song.

BTW, still working on the Thione Seck, ’cause I really want a Thione Seck song for Today’s track(s). And I may just have to accept the fact that the volume is low and post it/them anyway.

A Few Thoughts on Tariqas…

Assalamu alaikum, given some of the allegations that many of us are now all too familiar with, that are coming out, and that are associated with various Muslim tariqas, for me anyway, there are a few things that need to be kept in mind.

Firstly, not all tariqas are cults, as seems to be the meme advanced and emerging by some. Are some tariqas “cultish”, maybe, are some leaders “cultlike” in their behavior and their expectations and demands of their murids/followers? Perhaps.

However, not all tariqas are either cultish nor cultlike. Not all shaykhs are abusive to their followers. And I just wanted to put that out there. It’s one thing to make known abuse going on in the name of a particular group/tariqa, or in the name of Islam itself, and I’m in full support of that, especially as regards the protection of women and children. Having said that, though, tasawuf is a legitimate Islamic discipline, and there are numerous tariqas that are doing good work, that no one ever hears about, and even some of the tariqas where the allegations of abuse are coming out of are legitimate tariqas in and of themselves, some of the leaders/followers’ actions notwithstanding. So my point is, we don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater and label all tariqas as “cults” just because a small minority of shaykhs/leaders may be cultlike, or may just plain be mean and abusive to their followers.

I am also reminding myself that joining and being a part of a tariqa is not a “way to meet cool new friends”, as I saw someone online say, and it’s not just about being “a part of some great big special group”, it’s just one way out of many, albeit a more structured and organized one, to come closer to Allah, to perfect one’s character, and to purify your heart. And it’s not for everyone, and even if one subscribes to the whole “traditional Islam” thing, it doesn’t mean that one must find a tariqa and join it. In fact, maybe most people shouldn’t do that, unless they know for sure this is what they want to do, have done thorough research, and know what they’re getting into.

And I mention all of these things for no one else but myself, and anyone else who can take benefit from these words, because while I’m heartbroken, upset, and angry, and a whole host of other emotions and feelings that I’m having trouble putting words to, I also don’t want my own personal pendulum to swing back in the other direction and start labelling all tariqas bad, traditional islam as bad, all because of the recent things that have come out.

Good Weekend

Assalamu alaikum, Alhamdulillah, it was a pretty good weekend. And I really needed it, based on some of the past blog posts.

Some sisters came to visit me yesterday, one of them is getting married next Sunday to a brother from our masjid, so she will be living in the neighborhood Inshallah! I don’t get to my local masjid much, and I’ve found it hard to communicate with many of the women there due to their being a language barrier. There, for some reason, seem to be more American men than women there, and I’m not sure why this is the case.

Whatever the case, I can’t say that I have any Muslim female friends in my area, and that has always bothered me. So Inshallah, this will change soon. I haven’t gone to the masjid much lately, for various reasons, much of which is due to the fact that the women’s area in the current masjid is so small, and if even a few women are there it starts to feel really crowded really fast. I can’t even remember when was the last time I went to pray there. But Inshallah, the new masjid will be opening up soon, and it’s a bigger space, so Inshallah, it won’t be so crowded.

And the thought has occurred to me to see if my husband could take me to the new masjid so I could get familiar with the new building, when no one else is there, so that I can, say, go to the bathroom by myself if I need to, or go and make wudu without anyone’s assistance. Because, imho, there is a loss of dignity to me, if I need to use the restroom or renew my wudu, because, well, if you have to ask someone to help you with something like that, then, well, they know you gotta go or that you’ve broken your wudu, and maybe it’s strange, but I don’t want just anyone knowing that. I’d like to just be able to get up like anyone else, go to make wudu, or use the bathroom, just like anyone else would.

Anyway, it really was a nice visit, the sisters were wonderful Mashallah, and I was just really excited to have them visit, and it just put me in a good mood for the whole rest of the weekend.

And I slept till one in the afternoon today, I was quite upset about that, but I guess I needed the sleep. I hope I don’t have trouble sleeping tonight. I got up for Fajr this morning, took Chloe out, laid down to try to go back to sleep, listened to the radio for a while, fell back to sleep around 8 in the morning or so, and then the last thing I remember was my husband getting up around 10. The next thing I knew, I was looking at the clock and it was 1:02 in the afternoon! At which point I jumped out of bed, took a shower, ate some lunch and, well, started my day.

So anyway. I really probably should slowly walk away from Super Egg Hunt, check my Twitter one last time, and just go ahead and get ready for bed. I have to go into the office tomorrow, so I need to be up earlier than if I’m telecommuting. So I really probably should call it a night.

Today’s Track

Is “I Don’t Know Any Body Else” by Black Box (well Martha Wash really).. This is the Steve Silk Hurley mix (shoulda known that I’d like this version of the song better).

Perfect for a Saturday Night, had some Thione Seck I wanted to include, too, however the volume was really low on the tracks I found (bummer).