“…when news is brought to one of them, of (the birth of) a female (child), his face darkens, and he is filled with inward grief” (Quran 16:58

This is the context in which Islam was revealed, and must not be forgotten when trying to understand the history of women in the early Islamic period.
But let’s take one moment and think about how positively the Quran, whilst being revealed in such a dark time in Arab history, talks about women, in sharp contrast to the prevailing customs. Other than obviously condemning these abhorrent practices, the Quran does not talk down to women. In fact, when women approached the Prophet (saw) and complained that they were not mentioned in the Quran[2], Allah (swt) did not tell them to go home and not worry because they just need to be there for their husbands (!) – rather, Allah (swt) revealed the famous verse of equality:

“Indeed the Muslim men and women, – for believing men and women – for devout men and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in Charity, for men and women who fast (and deny themselves), for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in God’s praise for them has God prepared forgiveness and great reward.” (Quran 33:35)

We are all aware about this idea of equality, but how can we learn from the believing men and women without role models to emulate.
Let us first look at role models who are not infallible – the Quran does not relate many such examples, but one example of a leader that it does mention is Queen Bilqis. As the leader of a society, the Queen is praised for how she deals with the letter of Sulayman. Rather than act based on the advice of her (male) chiefs, which was to attack him, she responds in kindness with a gift; and rather than act in arrogance and pride, when she hears the truth, she submits to Allah (swt)[3].

What better lessons can we learn than the lessons that should resonate with us today – from the Quran itself? We see here that the Quran chooses to tell us the story of a woman leading a society – why is this? On top of that, the example is one of a woman whose rational intellect supersedes the men in her society; her strength and insight are to be admired and her method of solving problems to be praised! Where else in the Quran is any fallible male leader of a community praised in this way – yet we still insist on not following the Quranic teachings?

What about infallibles? We are so lucky to have the daughter of the Prophet (saw), the wife of the rightful successor, to the Prophet, Ali (as) and the mother of our Holy Imams (as) – the infallible Fatima (as) to be the role model for men and women. So what do we see in her life, remembering the society she was living in? We hear in lectures about her status as a part of the Prophet[4], the most faithful wife and a truthful believer whose worship surpassed that of men throughout time. But in this one example of an infallible woman, what else does Allah (swt) show us?
Despite her time being one in which women’s rights were trampled upon, in which Sayyida Fatima (as) did not receive her rights for Fadak, and Imam Ali (as) was not made the rightful caliph, did she sit down and do nothing? Or did she stand up like a “revolutionary or opposition activist, giving voice to her side of arguments in sermons … offering rebuke when strong rebuke could emphasize the meaning of truth” in her famous sermon? Was she cowardly not willing to deal with the leaders in society, or did she rebuke the caliph of the time in public?

In contemporary language, she “was the person who practised political work in the strongest manner: she stood alone in front of a new ruling power” – even whilst Imam Ali (as) did not confront the matter in such a direct way (because of other circumstances). By her actions, “she legitimised Muslim woman’s participation in politics as an orator, as a dynamic force of opposition, with all the effort and energy that that role would call for”.[5]

So in a Jahiliyya society, where women are treated as second-class citizens, where women are treated like property and where unveiled women on the street are considered prey by hungry men, Allah (swt) chooses to talk about things in an entirely different light. Whilst being constrained by the society of the time, the Quran still is able to give us things that we in the “enlightened” age, still are unable to accept. And rather than men and women emulating the Quranic teachings, we have men monopolising power in our countries and in our communities, with nobody (from either gender) standing up like Sayyida Fatima (as) to demand their rights.

Many times we lose sight of the bigger picture and become swamped with the chores of day to day life. Worship becomes one of these chores as the ornaments of life cloud our vision and delay our spiritual growth. In the Treatise on Rights, Imam Zaynul Aabideen (as) states “The right of your nafs (soul) against you is that you employ it in obeying Allah.”

إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا مَا عَلَى الْأَرْضِ زِينَةً لَّهَا لِنَبْلُوَهُمْ أَيُّهُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًا

“Lo! We have placed all that is in the earth as an ornament thereof that we may try them: which of them is best in conduct.” (Quran 18:7)

It is all too easy to become neglectful of our duties as Muslims. Allah (swt) has entrusted us with the duty of being His trustee, His calipha (vicegerent) on this earth and to fulfil the duties given, yet day by day we see that indeed this is not the case. We become disinclined to spiritual growth, our relationship with our Lord is cold and our allegiance to the Imam of our time (atf) is weak.

وَالْعَصْرِإِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لَفِي خُسْر

“By time, indeed man is at loss.” (Quran 103:1-2)

How many of us can say that we are aware and seek to treasure and enhance our bond with our Divine Master. How many times a day do we thank Him for the blessings He has bestowed upon us, day after day, through all the sin we commit and ignorance we live in.

Umrah

Umrah (the minor pilgrimage to Mecca) represents our return to Allah (swt), the Divine Creator. Ultimately, our goal in life is Allah (swt), to reach Him, to worship Him and only Him.

إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ

“Surely we are from Allah and to Him we return” (Quran 2:156)

Through the journey of umrah, we shed away the darkness of our lives, we leave behind worldly desires and we make a vow to become closer to Allah (swt) by yearning to reach divinity, purity and enter the Light. It is a vow of love to our Lord, to become one with Him, in the footsteps of His Holy Prophet (saw), to purify our hearts and souls. To do this we must enter a state of contemplation on our actions and tear ourselves away from the animalistic traits we acquire through every day living.

وَأَتِمُّواْ الْحَجَّ وَالْعُمْرَةَ لِلّهِ فَإِنْ أُحْصِرْتُمْ فَمَا اسْتَيْسَرَ مِنَ الْهَدْيِ

“And perform the pilgrimage and the pious visit (to Makkah) in honour of God; and if you are held back, give instead whatever offering you can easily afford.” (Quran 2:196)

The holy pilgrimage of Hajj (the major pilgrimage to Mecca) is a journey that should be performed at least once in a lifetime. Umrah, is an optional journey that involves less of the Hajj rituals. It is our way of serving our Creator. It is a journey that enables us to become what we should be – a being who worships Allah and follows the teachings of the Ahlul Bayt; a person who shuns the bad and embraces the good; a person who aspires to elevate their spiritual wellbeing to higher stages and to have the same effect on others; a person who does not engage themselves with trivial worldly matters but engages in matters concerning the hereafter and a person who is a role-model for others and is a beacon that personifies the meaning of Islam. For indeed the right of Allah (swt) upon us, is to worship Him and not associate any partner with Him.[1]

Our divine invitation

Masjid Al-Nabawi (The Prophet’s Mosque)

Summer of 2011 saw a group of London youth embark on a journey of a lifetime. We were given the divine invitation of Umrah. For many it was their first invitation. For others, it was a humble return.

There were mixed emotions amongst the group, apprehension, excitement, positive energy that buzzed from within us, and an eagerness and determination to make the most of this opportunity in every possible way. The idea of being within the presence of Allah’s (swt) most beloved, the Holy Prophet (saw) was enough to send goosebumps running over our skin.

Our experience in Medina was a mixed one of spiritual beauty and sadness. The fact that we were able to walk, breathe and worship within the abode of our beloved Holy Prophet (saw) was a feeling that was next to none. Masjid Al-Nabawi (The Prophet’s Mosque) was a place of utter tranquillity and beauty. Encased within the heart of the mosque was an area believed to be a Rawda min Riyad al-Jannah (Garden from the gardens of paradise), which we tried to visit whenever possible, to implore to Allah (swt), by His most beloved to Him to accept from us our prayers and supplications.

Within the vicinity of Masjid al-Nabawi was Jannat-ul Baqi’. A burial site that was the final resting place of many of the beloveds of our Prophet (saw) – Imam Hassan al-Mujjtaba (as), Imam Mohamed al-Baqir (as), Imam Jafar Al-Sadiq (as), and Imam Ali Al-Sajjad (as), peace and blessings upon their holy souls. Our beloved Umul Baneen (as) is also buried there. They say Imam Al-Ridha (as) is Ghareeb al Ghuraba (the lonely amongst strangers), however the sadness that welled up within our hearts at the sight of the meagre graves was too much. To top it off females were not allowed access to the Baqi’. Indeed these holy souls felt more estranged here. How we yearned to be able to get close to our beloveds and cry over their holy bodies and recite ziyaraat (supplication when visiting the grave of a person) within close proximity to them. What was even more heartbreaking was the unknown location of the grave of our Holy Sayeda Fatima Al-Zahraa (as). The destruction of Baytul Ahzan (the house of Fatima (as)) added to the pain we felt.

This sadness was appeased during our visit to Al-Nakhawla, a small haven of palm trees, a beautiful and sacred place where we felt at ease amongst the inhabitants. There we felt closer to our Imam Hassan (as) and our hearts and souls were uplifted with spirituality and love for the Ahlul Bayt (as).

O my Lord, here I am at Your service, here I am

Makkah was our destination. After entering the state of Ihram (the compulsory state a Muslim must enter the Holy city with abiding by a behavioural code of conduct) at Masjid Al-Shajjarah, we instantly felt humbled and closer to our Maker. Everyone, regardless of race and background, wealth and status was enclothed within the same material that represented our final outfit or kafan (shroud) in which we shall meet our Lord. We all were chanting the same words “labaik Allahuma labaik, labaik laa sharik laka labaik”

لبيك اللهم لبيك لبيك لا شريك لك لبيك

This translates to “O my Lord, here I am at Your service, here I am. There is no partner with You. Here I am.”

There was no ego or status. We were all Allah’s (swt) servants, and this journey was a reminder of our ultimate and final goal in life:

وَإِلَى اللَّهِ الْمَصِيرُ

“And unto Allah is the journeying.” (Quran 24:42)

Laying our eyes on the beautiful Ka’bah (symbolic house of Allah (swt) to which Muslims face in the daily prayers) was the climax we were anticipating. We were there. Our Master had granted us entry to His Holy House. Our hearts soared and overflowed with love and awe. Some of the group members broke down in tears. Others were in a state of calm, awe-struck by their surroundings and what it meant for them to be there. Reaching the Ka’bah was a sign that our journey had headed in the right direction. Our aim and goal was not the Ka’bah. Our aim and goal was Allah (swt).

إِنَّ أَوَّلَ بَيْتٍ وُضِعَ لِلنَّاسِ لَلَّذِي بِبَكَّةَ مُبَارَكًا وَهُدًى لِّلْعَالَمِينَ

“Lo! The first sanctuary appointed for mankind was that at Bekka (Makkah), a blessed place, a guidance to the people.” (Quran 3:96)

Completing our first umrah was a beautiful and joyous experience. Many group members over the course of the remaining nights performed the umrah again on behalf of family and loved ones. Performing the rituals helped strengthen our will power and discipline. It was a workout for the soul. Every tawwaf (circumambulation) we completed around the Holy House was a step closer to achieving nearness to Allah (swt). We felt lighter. Cleansed. Free of worldly desires and sin. Our time was spent in contemplation, worship and the recital of the Quran. Nothing else existed or mattered here, except for the relationship between ourselves and the Almighty. Nothing felt more amazing than to be under the night sky, praying with an earnest and genuine heart in front of the Holy Ka’bah and imploring our Lord to accept from us our deeds, strengthen our faith, forgive our sins, to hasten the appearance of the Imam of our time (atf) and to grant us to be of the followers of the Ahlul Bayt (as).

إِنَّمَا التَّوْبَةُ عَلَى اللّهِ لِلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السُّوَءَ بِجَهَالَةٍ ثُمَّ يَتُوبُونَ مِن قَرِيبٍ فَأُوْلَـئِكَ يَتُوبُ اللّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَكَانَ اللّهُ عَلِيماً حَكِيماً

“Verily, God’s acceptance of repentance relates only to those who do evil out of ignorance and then repent before their time runs out, and it is they unto whom God will turn again in His mercy – for God is all-knowing, wise.” (Quran 4:17)

يَهْدِي بِهِ اللّهُ مَنِ اتَّبَعَ رِضْوَانَهُ سُبُلَ السَّلاَمِ وَيُخْرِجُهُم مِّنِ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ بِإِذْنِهِ وَيَهْدِيهِمْ إِلَى صِرَاطٍ مُّسْتَقِيم

“Through which God shows unto all that seek His goodly acceptance the paths leading to salvation and, by His grace, brings them out of the depths of darkness into the light and guides them onto a straight way.” (Quran 5:16)

It was truly a journey of a lifetime and the experience will live with us forever. We learnt, grew and friendships developed that will flourish and last over the coming years. We were immensely grateful to our group leaders and spiritual guides who helped enhance the experience, helped look after us and ensured the journey panned out smoothly. Upon returning, we all felt a part of us was left behind, in Medina and in Makkah. And then we realised. It wasn’t that we had left it behind, it was that it was higher up, away from this life and closer to Allah (sw6). Our hope is in Allah (swt), the Almighty, that He accepts from us our deeds, and that He grants us all the blessing of Hajj to His Holy House, in this year and in every coming year.

* * *

The Lord created the foundations of Heaven
With it he gave a gift to all of creation
An angel wrapped in the scent of the Lord’s wisdom
This gift was called Fatima, leader of women

The world, the world… owes all to her
The world, the world… reaches for her

* * *

She is a proof against oppressors and evil
Those who have her love are immune to the devil
The whole world knows her scent as the scent of angels
The unhidden secret, the true holy grail

Secrets, secrets… Do not know her
Secrets, secrets… Unless they’re hers

* * *

Everything that exists takes Zahra as a guide
We take from her like sand is taken by the tide
Her prayer and patience shows how devils are defied
Every single good deed by Fatima abides

Her prayer, her prayer… It defines her
Her prayer, her prayer… It yearns for her

* * *

To hearts of truth and wisdom she is a mother
Much like elegant birds, flock to her her lovers
Yearns for her the Earth, and with it the hereafter
When she prostrated, the Universe circled her

Circles, circles… All around her
Circles, circles… Like the Ka’ba

Credits: heaven of light by user: enggul

That was until I came to work for a domestic violence charity in London. It was only then that I glimpsed the reality for many women here in the so called empowered and civilised ‘West’. To my astonishment I found out that my kind of life of safety and shelter from violence was in many cases the exception rather than the rule.

The statistics are shockingly high; one in four women in the UK will be a victim of violence at some point in her life (Mooney 1993 and Mirrless-Black 1999). That means a quarter of all women in the UK. So, even if we have been spared that experience we will know at least one other woman who has suffered or is suffering violence and abuse.

The violence can take the form of physical and or sexual assault. But just as destructive and brutal is the emotional, psychological and financial abuse that women are likely to endure. This includes bullying, name calling, harassment, intimidation, stalking, and control of her movements, thoughts and behaviour. It also often includes withholding food or money, stealing the victim’s money and using children to control the woman by either threatening to or actually harming them.

What is startling about this kind of violence is its pervasiveness and multi-faceted levels of abuse that chip away at the very essence of a woman’s sense of self and worth in life. Furthermore, the perpetrators of this human rights abuse in the majority of cases are intimate partners or family members and friends. These are people who should know better, in positions of trust and responsibility to love and nurture such as partners, husbands, sons, brothers, uncles and in some cases female members of the family. Abuse committed in this context is known, amongst other things, as domestic abuse or domestic violence.

For the past 18 months Solace Women’s Aid, a Domestic Abuse charity in London have been coordinating a three year research project looking at what happens to women who report and seek help for the violence they are experiencing. So far 100 women have been tracked. What is scary is the egalitarian way in which domestic violence targets women. There is no specific profile of a victim or if you prefer a survivor of abuse. Women from all backgrounds can find themselves in this predicament. Variables such as ethnicity, social class, educational attainment, career path or the lack of it, religiosity, age or self-confidence  do not in any way act as indicators of whether a woman is more likely to experience violence or not. For instance the research project has worked with wealthy middle class and high powered career women who have found themselves in violent relationships.

“How can they let this happen to themselves?” is the question that is initially asked but having talked with and heard these amazing women’s stories it soon became obvious  that the question that should be asked is, “how can the perpetrators do this to their loved ones?”

At the heart of domestic violence is the power and control dynamic and once women are trapped in that cycle questions like” why doesn’t she just  leave?” illustrate a real ignorance of how, as a result of the abuse, women’s minds and bodies are no longer their own. We should be asking “what does her abuser do to make it impossible for her to leave?”

Apart from the obvious threats of violence and death, a woman’s identity in such a relationship is under constant and systematic attack. Everything that she does, says and thinks is labelled as wrong, stupid, evil or shameful.  Together with isolation from friends and family, which often happens in order to hide the shame of her partner’s violence or more likely as a result of a direct act of the partner to cut the woman from any support network (friends, family or work colleagues), the woman has no one else to tell her otherwise. The seed of doubt in self is planted and the abuse, isolation and instinct for her, and/or her children’s, survival makes a woman adapt and change her behaviour constantly in the hope of stopping the violence. This toxic mix of emotions and behaviour gradually results in the erosion of belief in her ability to function or survive outside of the abusive relationship.

For those women who can muster enough courage and strength to leave often the threat of death is all too real. Tragically, they are killed by their perpetrator. How many cases do we read of weekly in which a man separated from his wife, partner, child or children ends up murdering them and then kills himself?  In the media these cases are never described as cases of domestic violence. The most you may get is a sentence stating that the offender was known to the police or had a substance dependency problem. In choosing not to categorise the crime in this way we are never made aware of the extent to which violence against women and families is present in society. In doing so, such crime is normalised. It makes us think that these are one off incidents and perhaps the murderer loved his family too much to bear being separated from them. We are therefore distracted from the fact that he has been systematically harming them and it simply became intolerable for them to stay.

So what does Islam say about this? Are there any Muslim survivors of Domestic Abuse? How do Muslims as a community deal with this issue, if at all? For possible answers on this issue you will have to read part two in the upcoming month.

If you think you or someone you know may be affected by domestic abuse or violence please ring the national 24 hour helpline for advice and support on: Freephone- 0808 2000 247.

Useful websites:

http://www.nationaldomesticviolencehelpline.org.uk
http://www.crimestoppers-uk.org
http://www.facebook.com/thesunshineproject
http://nour-dv.org.uk
http://www.wisemuslimwomen.org
http://muslimcommunityhelpline.org.uk

 Credits: abuse by user: thelampnyc and broken glass by user: ZeRo`SKiLL

George Galloway

Few took George Galloway seriously when he announced his candidacy for the vacant parliamentary seat of Bradford West last March. Of those that did, fewer still thought he would win. His campaign, though he may strenuously deny it, focused on courting the key so-called ‘Muslim vote’ which represented 45% of the constituency’s population.

‘God KNOWS who is a Muslim. And he KNOWS who is not. Instinctively, so do you. Let me point out to all the Muslim brothers and sisters what I stand for: I, George Galloway, do not drink alcohol and never have,’ the Catholic told the Bradford electorate in a campaign letter. ‘I have received…The Hilal-i-Quaid-e-Azam for services to the restoration of democracy in Pakistan 30 years ago.’

What is shocking is not that such tactics were resorted to. The exploitation of ethnic divisions has long been a sad truism of British politics; Labour cannot claim exemption from this in their selection of Imran Hussain to front their campaign for what should have been an inexorable victory. What is shocking is that it worked. Evidently, sobriety and claims to archaic foreign policy successes can earn you a cornucopia of Muslim votes at a time of severe economic austerity.

Youth unemployment in parts of Respect’s new constituency stands at an astonishing 35%. Wages, even levels of pupils progressing to higher education, are amongst the lowest in the country. Surely, surely, these should be the most salient issues to be addressed in a by-election, in which case Galloway, whose voting participation record was amongst the lowest of any MP in the last parliament, would have been soundly rebuffed. Yet, too many Muslims have been reluctant to move from what has been aptly described by the journalist Mehdi Hasan as an ‘anti-war comfort zone’.

The British Parliament

No other ethnic minority group in Britain has been so reluctant to involve themselves in domestic political affairs; focusing so disproportionately on events thousands of miles away abroad. Despite making up around 4.5% of the population, Muslims currently account for 1.2% of MPs; and even this is an improvement from the 0.6% following the 2005 election. No doubt discrimination may be a factor, yet it can no longer be used as a scapegoat for a supine community. I watched with incredulity on a well-known community channel as a panellist claimed that ‘Muslims should never call themselves British’ (other than when claiming welfare benefits, I am sure he would hasten to add). British Muslims, by definition, are part of the modus vivendi of this nation, and must fulfil their societal obligations as productive members of the community.

Parts of the national media, the Daily Mail being the main culprit, have been guilty of astonishingly Islamophobic headlines in recent times. Discrimination against minorities, however, is far from a recent trend. In 1906 the same newspaper revealed the headline ‘Jews bring crime and disease to Britain’. Over the past century the Daily Mail has targeted several groups; Jews, the Irish, homosexuals, and now Muslims. Yet the Muslim community is only exacerbating the problem with its determination to avoid domestic interaction. Recent events in Iraq, Pakistan and the Palestinian territories must not be forgotten at any cost, though neither must it be forgotten when a local hospital faces closure, or when a ruthless government seeks to enforce draconian spending cuts across the board.

That the English Defence League’s support base is augmenting in the ethnically delicate town of Luton, therefore, is far from a bombshell, however deplorable. Tommy Robinson, the pseudonym for the league’s popular, if beleaguering, leader claims that he seeks only to engage in ‘a battle against Islamic extremism’. Luton’s indigenous residents see, rightly or wrongly, a Muslim community where English is demoted as a second language and there is a nascent anti-government sentiment that extends to a hatred of the Queen in a monarchical country; where ‘British soldiers burn in hell’ is a catchphrase given more credence and support than the national anthem.

To preclude the EDL’s isolated movement from becoming a populist campaign, Muslims must come out in their thousands. Turnouts must increase and efforts made to castigate the bigoted views of ‘Muslims Against Crusades’ et al who, in truth, have less followers than subscribers to ‘I Love Cats’ magazine (it does exist). What is required is a cultural shift, facilitated by education in mosques, weekend schools and in the household, of the role of the Muslim in this community. Muslims should be proud to be part of what, by most standards, is the most tolerant society in the world, and engage in local politics accordingly, whilst concomitantly opposing aggressive foreign policy ventures – as the bulk of the British people do. Our mosques should be open to inter-faith events for all members of the public to attend; only then will be truly be following the harrowingly beautiful advice given by Imam Ali in a letter to his great companion, Malik: ‘Man is either your equal in faith, or your equal in humanity’.

As for Mr. Galloway, I wish him the best of luck in his return to Westminster. Let us hope he will serve the people of Bradford West a tad better than was the case in Bromley.

Credits: Both pictures from Flicker, George Galloway from DavidMartynHunt and British Parliament from UK Parliament.

Born on 20^th Jamadi II, five years after the announcement of revelation, the arrival of a daughter in the house of the greatest human being to have ever lived was a significant event, not least because of the way women were treated in the pre Islamic Arabian society. The Holy Prophet’s (saw) immense joy at the occasion underlined the importance of the new born as well as the respect that Islam gives to women.

Three importance incidents from her life stand out as examples of her centrality to the Ahlul Bayt (as) and the reason for her important role in the religion of Islam:

Hadith al-Kisaa (The Narration of the Cloak) 

A number of companions and wives of the Holy Prophet (as), including Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari and Aisha bint Abu Bakr, narrate that on one occasion the Holy Prophet (saw) came to the house of Fatima (as) and asked her for his Yemeni cloak as he was feeling a weakness in his body. Soon after, Hasan (as), Hussain(as) and Ali (as) also arrived at the house and joined the Holy Prophet (saw) under the cloak. Lastly, Fatima (as) also joined the rest of her family under the cloak. Finally, the Holy Prophet (as) prayed to Allah (swt) saying that these five under the cloak were “the people of his house” (Ahlul Bayt). When Jibraeel asked Allah (swt) who it was under that cloak, the Almighty responded by saying:

“And they planned and Allah (also) planned, and Allah is the best of planners.” (Quran 3:54)

Even though it has only been two years, everything seems so blurry. Trying to remember what I felt the first time I had my first pain attack seems as difficult as understanding a conversation under water. All I remember is that one second I was going through my notes on Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations and the next second I was screaming till my voice disappeared, curling up into a ball and feeling my stomach will at any moment to blow into pieces.

Both physically and mentally, I had been through pain before. I was a girl that had experienced war, prison, torture and racism from a very young age and my falling off bikes and breaking bones were monthly events that I as a clumsy tom boy girl who liked to cross the boundaries of physics with her bike was used to. Yes, pain was not an unfamiliar subject to me. But what I would experience, now two years ago, would change my life.

I was no different than most young girls with an ethnic background. I aced my A-levels and was one of those people that held a book wherever they went. Studying hard and achieving top marks were my life. I was a social person and family was of great importance to me. Entering second year and seeing that soon I would graduate from English, the world of Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Jane Austen was a dream come true and a dream I was impatient to reach as soon as it was possible.

That moment when I was curled up screaming in the living room, all these things were forgotten. Nothing mattered besides being able to breathe for just a couple of minutes without feeling as if my stomach was being torn into pieces. I remember lying in the ambulance bed, telling myself “all this will be over in just a couple of hours”. I thought to myself that I had probably just eaten something bad and my body was over reacting.

I couldn’t imagine then that it was physically or mentally possible for me to bare this pain for longer than a couple of hours. I was driven to Ealing hospital in a rush. I was poked and examined like an animal in a lab, diagnosis of what I had kept on changing. It continued like this till the next day, the day after that, and suddenly I had been in the hospital for three weeks. No one knew what I had. Blood tests, MRI’s, Scans and nothing showed any sign of what I might have. In the end Ealing Hospital gave up on me, they gave a vague diagnosis of my illness being a mental issue, that I was under too much stress and I was sent home.

Days, weeks and months went by and nothing changed, during that period, I had to stop my world. I was stripped of everything that identified me, I was no longer the student, I didn’t have the energy to be the daughter, nor was I able to be any good friend for the people that needed me.

I was back in hospital for a second time, this time a different hospital and after going surgery and still no hope of finding what was wrong, I broke down. I was terrified of the pain. I was tired physically and emotionally. I felt I was failing – I was failing as a student, as a daughter, as a friend, and now failing to beat this illness. We often think the moments of success are what define us, the many achievements we décor our lives with. But in fact they are the moments of failure that truly create us. How we decide to rise and how we deal with failure colour our soul more than any success ever will. The moment when I felt I had reached my bottom, turned out to be my rise instead of my fall.

I remember in those days I was so weak and in pain that I needed to be pushed in a wheelchair. One day I asked my brothers to drive me to the park near the hospital. It was approaching sunset and I remembered my aunt telling me, that this time is one of the times when the doors of heaven are open. I turned my head towards the qibla (direction of the Kaaba) and fell down crying out to God – The Comforter, the Protector and my Healer. My battle was far from over, but knowing that Allah (swt) was with me, knowing that He is my Protector, gave me the will to continue fighting.

I saw Allah’s (swt) mercy towards me in my family who were beside me every day, in the spouse He sent me who would stand by me and support me throughout this long and hard battle. I came to appreciate the true blessings that Allah (swt) gives us that we so easily take for granted: the possibility to breathe freely and without difficulty, the possibility of sleeping through a whole night without waking up from pain attacks. I was no longer a failure, but I was a fighter. And I kept on fighting. I continued to see how merciful God is and knew that patience would be my medicine against this illness.

Time flew by; I got married and resumed my studies while battling against the pain.  A couple of months later I finally met with a doctor who knew what this illness was, it was not mental or stress elated, but rather something to do with the nervous system. And with a simple medicine, the pain vanished completely.

Today I am free, I can breathe easily, I can think clearly and most importantly I can live life rather than surviving life. There is no fairy tale ending, nor is battle a romantic event, it is hard, it is painful and it takes a lot of work. No matter how dark you might think your situation is, no matter how hopeless, know that Allah (swt) is there for you.  You will survive it.

I learned that miracles do happen; an illness that was called a medical enigma was solved after seeing dozens of doctors and weeks staying at hospitals. By Allah’s (swt) mercy, I was cured by taking a couple of pills a day. I learned that faith in Allah (swt) is a vital weapon in dark moments. But to have faith in Allah (swt), you need to have faith in yourself. You are stronger than you believe.

I would like to end this by remembering Imam Ali’s (as) wise hadith:

“Your cure is within you, but you do not know, your illness is from you, but you do not see. You are the “Clarifying Book” through whose letters becomes manifest the hidden. You suppose that you are a small body but the greatest world unfolds within you. You would not need what is outside yourself if you would reflect on ’self’, but you do not reflect.”

I ponder on these words every time I feel I have a challenge ahead of me. Looking back on all those difficult moments and what I learned about myself as well as others has been the greatest success and achievement that I can decorate my life with.

The articles will be published on the website daily for the first week. After Monday 21^st May articles will be uploaded to the website once a week.

The VOU provides a unique platform for opinions, discussions and debates on a range of topics that are aimed at young and professional Muslims.

In the next few days we have a wonderful array of articles that will be coming your way; the first of which will be an autobiographical piece based on a true story. Following it, we will be publishing a study on the causes and impacts of domestic violence in the United Kingdom.

Other articles will be providing an analysis on the recent elections in Bradford and the Formula 1 race in Bahrain despite the reported political turmoil. Let’s not forget the poetry section, a new art section where your art and photography pieces can be showcased and many more vibrant and exciting articles to be published.

Feel free to send us pieces that you have written and would like to share on the VOU website. The Voice of Unity team is happy to help you begin your writing career, so please do not hesitate to contact us regarding a piece that you would like to write but are unsure on how to start it or if you simply just need some ideas to get kicked off.

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Freedom: the right to do as we like and the ability to choose our own destiny is not just a Western concept but a concept at the core of Islam. It was freedom that allowed our Prophet (pbuh) to embody the religion of Islam and spread Allah’s (swt) message and it was this very concept that brought so many to Islam and gave them the opportunity to freely submit to God. This freedom is the same concept of free will so often spoken about in religious discourse. Adam (as) was given superiority over the angels in the Quranic narration, when the angels were ordered to bow down to him, because Allah (swt) gave Adam (as) and the rest of humanity the ability to choose the path they wish to follow. If it be a path of good, they may reach a status higher than that of the angels and if it be a path of evil they may plummet to lowliness lower than the animals.

On the creation of humanity with this ability, Imam Ali (as) has said,

“Allah (swt) has created the angels from the intellect, He did not place lust in them; and He created the animals with lust, but did not place intellect in them. But He placed both intellect and lust in the sons of Adam (as). Therefore, he whose intellect overcomes his lust is greater than the angels. And he whose lust overcomes his intellect is lower than the animals.” (1)

Allah’s (swt) existence and being

To comprehend the purpose of creation we must fully appreciate the existence of Allah (swt). He existed before everything and will exist after everything, thus He is not limited by anything. We as human beings depend on Allah (swt) for our existence, we depend on food for our livelihood and we depend on people for our sanity. We are reduced to weak incapability without nourishment; we are social creatures that are naturally inclined to suffer morale and self esteem drops in situations of solitude or bereavement. Allah (swt) on the other hand is independent and needs nothing from anyone or anything.

Since Allah (swt) is all perfection, one of his attributes is that He is Al-Kareem (Most Generous) and He is the Giver of grace and bounty:

“The bounty of your Lord is not confined” (Quran 17:20).

If it appears that He does not give, there is a problem on the end of the receiver, not on His part. Thus if a thing has the possibility of good He will create it as it would be unjust to His being to not create what can be good; therefore His giving nature makes creation necessary.

Allah (swt) created angels who possess all the perfections possible for them. According to Quran and Hadith they do not have an element of struggle and strife to attain their perfections but perfection is innate in their being. They all have a known station and are drawn up in ranks to glorify the Almighty. They do not precede Him in speech and (only) according to His commandment do they act (Quran 21:27).

In the words of Imam Ali (as):

“He created the openings between high skies and filled them with all classes of angels. Some of them are in prostration and do not raise their heads. Others are in a kneeling position and do not stand up. Some of them are in array and do not leave their position. Others are extolling Allah (swt) and do not get tired.” (2)

Humanity however, was created with a higher perfection − the ability of attaining good from its own will and performance against an ongoing force of evil. Thus every action we take in creating good or doing what is good means we are fulfilling our purpose of creation.

What we can do

Since, upon reflection, we understand that we have free will it means that we can do almost anything we want. We have 24 hours in a day, 8 or so of which we rest, 16 with which we can work and play. We need time for spirituality, time for family, time for ourselves, time for friends and time for our community. We have capabilities and talents, aspects which we are strong in, others in which we find ourselves to be weak. We can strengthen our strong points, work on our weaknesses, and excel as individuals. We need be confident and hardworking, polite and respectful. Modesty and humility are important, generosity and charity are essential.

It’s all very nice to have such a positive outlook and be aware of what we can do but it would be foolish for us to assume that adopting such a lifestyle is so easy. Life is a struggle; as much as we may struggle with difficulties and tragic events in our life, we struggle with self constructed ills ­− laziness, over thought problems and despair.

Our grandmothers’ advice may instruct us to do a certain good act because we will attain such and such amount of thawab (reward/good deeds) but in our modern outlook on religion we should not be doing actions for good deeds but instead we should understand our actions for the good they produce. Yet in essence doing an action for a good deed is because this action is good, it promotes good, helps us to achieve good and simply aids us in fulfilling our purpose of creation.

Every time we practice random kindness, every time we offer up our time to help a charity, every time we sacrifice some time to visit the ill or visit the dead we are taking steps towards our purpose of living and the reason we were created: exercising our free will to do good. Very often seeing others’ hardships and involving ourselves in helping others aids us in turn to make the most of our time on this earth. We need to take the time out to appreciate what our existence stands for because without this we cannot really travel the path of good.

Evaluating our days in reflection is a tremendously useful tool employed by Muslims and non-Muslims alike. We are lucky to have regulated prayer in our everyday lives but an addition of some time for reflection can do wonders. Reflecting on our past helps us to learn from mistakes, learn from achievements and produce a better day in our next. The purpose of Allah’s (swt) creation of humanity is so that we may serve Him but in our ignorance we think this is only the upholding of the compulsory actions. True service, however, is the worship of the free, those who in their compulsory actions worship freely, out of their own will, those who choose to do all that is good, to eliminate all that is bad in their being, to travel a path of pure intention towards the Almighty. It is an ongoing struggle on an onwards going journey.

References:

(1) Wasa’il al-Shi’ah, vol.11, pg. 164.

(2) Nahjul Balaghah, Sermon 1.

Credits: Images are from flickr and iStockPhoto: Two Paths.  Seagull. Individual Power.

Social sharing – the broadcasting of our thoughts and activities – is seen as a major behavioural shift and is the most important sociological phenomenon of the 21st century. The information we choose to share with friends, colleagues and even strangers, is re-defining the idea of what is private and public before our very eyes.

If you have a Facebook account, go to your profile and notice the categories – a typical profile contains answers to most of the questions employers are not allowed to ask during job interviews: race, origin, relationship status, political views and even religious views. All of that information can tell you a lot about a person and that is not even half of it – your taste in music, movies, television shows, and anything else you choose to share on your profile is ample information for someone to feel like they know you.

What is privacy?

Previously, privacy was defined as the ability of an individual or group to seclude them or information about themselves and thereby reveal them selectively. Having the autonomy to control the sharing of information and how it will be used and manipulated is paramount to an individual’s right to privacy. Implicitly, this definition is gradually becoming obsolete and the usage of the term in this context is losing its meaning.

Not long ago, privacy was perceived as the norm and invading it required justification. Today we live in a society in which exposure is the norm and the request to protect one’s privacy almost demands justification. People seem to justify their over-sharing behaviour with the common phrase – ‘We’ve got nothing to hide, so what’s the problem?’

Facebook’s strategy

Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook who made all of this possible, states that ‘people have really gotten comfortable not only sharing more information and different kinds, but more openly and with more people.’ According to him, the new generation values openness, and casts anyone who cares about privacy as old-fashioned. Zuckerberg has convinced Facebook users that openness means the freedom to share the trivialities of daily life. These arguments are made convincingly and often with the magical words ‘we connect by sharing’. People are often unaware that Facebook’s strategy depends on our shifting notions of privacy.

Facebook, and other social networking websites, create services that are so useful or entertaining that people will give up ‘some’ privacy in order to use them. The strategy is then to convince people to give up more and more privacy and share more. The more that people are willing to put online, the more profit Facebook can make from advertisers by selling people’s information. That is why the privacy settings of Facebook are continuously changing to public-by-default and private-by-effort. It is also the exact same reason why Facebook encourages you to add more friends, not because they feel you are lonely and need to socialise, but because the more friends you add the more you will share. To put it differently, the entire business model of Facebook and other social networking websites are based on the notion of ‘monetising’ people’s privacy. To succeed they must slowly change the notion of privacy itself – the social norm – so that what users are giving up doesn’t seem so valuable in the first place.

The world, it seems, is responding. Facebook is now the biggest social network in countries ranging from Indonesia to Colombia. In fact, it is even bigger than Indonesia and Columbia. Statistics show that if Facebook were a country, it would be the third largest in the world with a population of more than 500 million people. The change to ‘openness’ is made possible by the way social networking sites are structured. Sharing everything about anything has made very easily by the lay-out, using words such as ‘share’, ‘friends’ and ‘status’ so that people do not feel there is anything wrong with sharing specific information. This gives users a false sense of security; people say or do things they wouldn’t normally do or say in person. This over-sharing may have potentially negative consequences.

Media reports have shown that user’s Facebook sites have been used in assessing their employment candidacy. A survey found that one out of four employers has rejected applicants based on research via search engines. Moreover, students have been suspended or criminally charged on the basis of information posted on Facebook. Research even indicates that a large amount of young people perceive psychological risks associated with feeling uncomfortable or regretful about their disclosure and social risks.

Shifting values

This development raises many questions: Is the new generation unaware of the consequences of over-sharing personal information or is Zuckerberg correct in saying that our generation is comfortable in sharing private information? According to research, it is a false assumption that the new generation is careless about its privacy and that it values openness.

There is a broad and deep interest in privacy, even if there is also a desire to engage in public. The two are not in opposition. People’s participation in social media does not mean that privacy is not important to them. The contrary is true, privacy often matters more to people when they are forced into the spotlight. But the new generation has a different concept of privacy and control than previously understood.

Awareness

As mentioned before, it is the structure of social networking websites which shifts the balance of power in terms of visibility. In online public spaces, interactions are public-by-default, private-through-effort – the exact opposite of what we experience in real life.  Online conversations, in contrary to daily life conversations, are easily overheard. These conversations are often persistent, searchable, and easily spreadable. Online, users have to put effort into limiting how far information flows. They have to consciously act to curb visibility.

This runs counter to every experience people have ever had in daily life and people don’t seem to put the effort into locking specific information down.  But this is not because they don’t care about privacy – this is because they don’t think that what they are saying really matters all that much to anyone. Most people are not aware of how their interactions online can be used to make serious assumptions about who they are, who they know, and are not well informed about the reach of the network, and how their profile could potentially be viewed by millions of people. Statistics show that over half of Facebook users surveyed are unaware that their profiles are searchable by millions of other Facebook users.

Opting out

Facebook is aware of the fact that people have a hard time leaving the website. That is why it has decided to lend a helping a hand. Whenever users are trying to leave, Facebook doesn’t seem to let them go. Pictures of friends suddenly appear in front of their screen with the message that these ‘friends’ will miss them dearly and that the reason they are giving for leaving is not valid enough and can be dealt with in many other ways. An entire manipulative route is designed just to hold on to users and not letting them get rid of Facebook.

The whole idea of deactivating a Facebook account is in itself quite misleading since the account will be activated automatically from the moment a user log in the next time, unless the user has discovered the mysteriously hidden ‘delete my account’ option, which is almost inaccessible and therefore people often are not aware that such a choice even exists.

For many people, the social cost of leaving social networking websites is far too great – even if they are uncomfortable with privacy settings. People may not like having their privacy violated or being in situations where they are being watched, but they will always choose social status and community relations over privacy. They would rather be vulnerable to more people and deal with institutions than to feel disconnected from their friends. Opting out of online communities is quickly becoming the same as opting out of society.

Conclusion

Social networking websites have become a cornerstone of people’s lives, a component of their identity and not something they will throw away over abstract concerns over who might see their baby photos. The sheer volume of personal information that people are publishing online and the fact that some of it could remain visible permanently raises deep concerns about ethical use and the lines of what is private and what is not.

The concept of privacy has become so blurred and misunderstood that people can find themselves involved in situations that are very undesirable and unexpected. Whether we like it or not, the battle over privacy has already been fought. The big corporations won. Whatever these powerful companies – with tentacles that reaches deep into our personal information – have done so far to invade people’s privacy, it is only the beginning of a never ending phenomenon that is fast expanding. Privacy is changing rapidly and in ways we can barely comprehend.

Credits: Images are from flickr. Facebook Map. Facebook: Do we Connect. Facebook. Facebook Settings