By ibnalghobeiri

The Nawasib Are Not Muslims

For context, the nawasib are more interested in fighting the Shi'a than fighting the Zionists because the nawasib are not Sunni Muslims. They are allied with the Zionists in their hate for God's emissaries and for those who follow them. This is simply a doctrinal reality. And in politics, look around: the nawasib are on the side of the Zionists of the world. They are busy trying to convince Sunni Muslims that the Shi'a are the problem in order to turn the Muslims against Iran and relieve the U.S and israel. Things could not be more obvious..

What to Look for in a Husband

The 4 main things a woman should look for in a husband in today's society are:

1. Fear of God
2. Social awareness
3. Decency/Presentability
4. Patience

Here is why: (1) Fear of God is the basis of all virtue at the mental, spoken and behavioral level. It is the element most needed for the man to self-build and for the man to build a successful life. A man who fears God fears Him in his choices and the way he treats his wife and children. (2) Without social awareness, a man is unwise, which automatically causes disorder in the household. Knowing enough about politics, including knowing the physical and moral/cultural threats that jeopardize a family, is necessary to protect it in a constantly changing society. (3) Contrary to what 'social media masculinity' says, a man should not be extravagant. Extravagance makes men soft and is certainly not the same as making sure one is neat, clean, tasteful and presentable. The latter is necessary for self-perception and for the respect of others. (4) Patience shows maturity and life experience: a real man should have the cognizance to deal with others' imperfections and see them as people who are growing. In addition, a man who stands for God faces tribulations, which will break him - and his family - without patience..

What to Look for in a Wife

The 4 main things a man should look for in a wife in today's society are:

1. Fear of God
2. Sound reason-emotion balance
3. Modest beauty
4. Humbleness

Here is why: (1) Females are inherently more spiritually 'skilled' than males are in terms of worship. A woman who is God-fearing submits to the sovereignty of Islam over her life. She views her husband and children as an opportunity to focus on 'loving, reforming and cultivating' for God. (2) Modern-day legal, political, economic, and educational systems - including the media that moves along - encourage women to approach life and relationships with purely emotional (immature) or purely pragmatic (materialistic) mindsets. But balance is the means to true success. (3) Men should care for some level of certainty that a women they are approaching for marriage is indeed along the line of their personal preferences, but also, that the beauty they seek is one that completes them in a marital, family, and social setting. Such women 'make' life. (4) A woman who has merciless expectations, wanting her husband to 'provide' a huge home, fancy cars and such, does not understand Islam's standards or the nature of society today. Humble women know marriage is not about those things, but about exchanging obedient love and mercy..

Marx on Religion: Hasty Generalizations & Reversed Realities

"It is the opium of the people", wrote Marx on religion. The broad category of 'religion', he believed, was hence a tool of social control to keep people in a state of false happiness instead of revolutionary awakening. But his hasty generalization clearly did not age very well. Today, it is the absence of religion - in its truest sense of God-consciousness - that allows the continuity of the world's injustices. It is the silencing of religion that has plagued societies with "illusory happiness" in the name of freedom. It is the way of secular powers to excuse and sponsor suffering. But this is the materialistic mind: limited in its perception and conclusions. Today, the true opium of the people is the financial incentive that paralyzes the masses and prevents them from fighting [only] to secure economic stability, and from emigrating to revolutionary lands for the same "illusions". The true opium is in submission to the material rather than the immaterial. Meanwhile, submission to God necessitates rejection of any other form of submission. Weakness before God constitutes unlimited strength in the face of those falsely claiming the rights and jurisdictions extending from lordship. Marx did not realize: true religion is the only safeguard of human value..

Silence is a Gate to Wisdom

In the West, believing communities are like an empty field. It seems anyone can become a speaker and public figure, talking about [the most] important matters like Islamic politics, history, jurisprudential issues like the 'hijab, etc. True knowledge, genuine sincerity, and actual dedication lead a person to avoid the spotlight: to humble oneself, work on improving, and serve where their work is needed until they are [almost] forced to accept attention. Anyone slightly familiar with the lives of the purest and most knowledgeable Islamic scholars knows how serious they were about this. They went to great lengths to avoid speaking and 'representing' the religion. Imam al-Ridha (a) says in a narration: "Among the signs of [actual] understanding are self-containment, knowledge, and silence. Silence is a gate of the gates of wisdom. Silence earns admiration. It is an indication of every virtue"..

The Shi'i Jurists & the Palestinian Cause

No one has stood in support of the Palestinian cause as openly and sincerely as the jurists and religious authorities of the Shi'a, from Jabal 'Amel to Najaf to the global climax of the sect's versatile involvement in this righteous struggle after the Islamic Revolution in Iran. The squeaky voices that emerge from within the sect who say otherwise are about as relevant as the voices that emerge from within the Palestinian community denying said support and rejecting it, or accepting a two-state solution: these have no actual weight among the reasonable. Understand that this firm stance is not a personal analysis or political/historical interpretation of the 'situation' in Palestine. That is essentially how it is depicted in the West under the ceiling of free thought, opinion and expression - to excuse treacherous takes. By flawed theory or active policy, excusing treacherous takes causes pure takes to dissolve in the discourse and become equal in value, effectively creating a game where the only players on the floor are the decision-makers of the political class (ironically in democracy's name)! So-called 'tolerant' culture creates this game not to act on some sincere love for intellectual liberty, or to introduce non-confrontational debate as a life-saving alternative for 'war' as a whole. The true aim is 'confiscation of the sword' to enable the wrong actors..

On Rising: Activism Must Remain Sacred

Muslims cannot tell activists of other ideologies who are also bought into righteous struggles such as the Palestinian cause that they are wrong or have no place in doing so. But Muslims can and must maintain the religious identity of their own participation in any struggle. Today, there is a global awakening such that hardly any society around the world does not consist of an educated and conscious faction of people who understand social duties towards political events. This awakening is a blessing, but can also be harmful for Muslims if uncareful. Muslims believe in Islamic laws and ethics; the conduct they maintain in protests, the rhetoric they choose, the leadership they follow, and their methods of organization must all be aligned with Islamic principles. And the goal for which all of the above is decided must, as well. Do Muslim "activists" understand the requisites of 'rising' in Islamic law and [of] struggle against injustice or any of the related Islamic oblibations? Perhaps. In any case, that is the question that preserves sight of the standard. A 'movement' that is not sacred is 'stagnant'..

Modernists & Materialists: Why Western Academia?

The modernists and materialists' adherence to Western literature on Islam and the Islamic world has nothing to do with 'objectivity' and accuracy. It is more about hardly knowing Arabic and wanting to justify secular dreams with a new narrative on the religion. This kind of Muslim is becoming more common - the secular 'believer' who uses the guise of modernity and misplaced excuse of 'reason' to justify denial of religious axioms that limited intellects were never meant to encompass, and the laws or perspectives the West says are 'outdated'! This kind of Muslim barely reads or speaks Arabic, but wants to reform the religion and its tradition; and considers Western authors who do not view Muhammad (s) as a Prophet or the Qur'an as a divine text 'less biased' and more adept than the jurists who gave their lives to Islam. This kind of Muslim wants Islam without the laws or beliefs that the Western pseudo-intellectual considers outlandish. This kind of Muslim sells the idea that it is in believers' interest to abandon Islamic policies and be content with inability to defend their nations and resources! Do not be fooled by the soft war. Ignore this kind of Muslim and adhere to the way of the God-conscious entity which, under the leadership of the pious and insightful jurists, survived centuries of persecution by tyrants and attempts of infiltration by false academics..

Muslims & American Public Opinion

To be honest, we do not care what the American public thinks of us. The American public could not stop its government if it decided to wage war and commit genocide anywhere around the world tomorrow morning. This is quite obvious at this point. The only Muslims who care what the American public thinks of Islam and Muslims are either (a) those who have to because they live among them and should clarify they are being misrepresented, or (b) those who consider themselves servants of the U.S and want to assimilate. The rest of us do not need to do any explaining because we know how incapable the American public is of influencing its own political fate in the democratic utopia its leaders have advertised as matchless and forcefully exported for the last century (let alone of saving others). It takes half a lie to convince the American public we Muslims are all kinds of evil, a few big games to keep them busy while their government massacres us in the name of eradicating that evil, and an election with ultimately identical candidates to forget it ever happened..

The Real Test

In the new year, the real test for believers around the world is to reflect on the weight of where they live, who they marry, what they do for a living, how they spend their time and money, and who they associate with on the political state of the world. The test is to return to the basic questions of why God created them, how He ought to be worshipped, what role we all play in achieving Islamic objectives, etc. These are the questions that separate a believer from a disbeliever and a servant of virtue from one of evil. It is narrated that God said to Musa (a): "Have you performed an act for Me?" Musa (a) said: "I prayed for You, fasted and gave charity and remembered for You". God Almighty said: "As for prayer, it is a guide for you; and fasting is a sanctuary; and charity is a shadow [of mercy]; and remembrance is light. So what act have you done for Me?" Musa (a) said: "Show me which act [of the acts I did] is for You". God asked: "O' Musa, have you taken someone as a guardian for me, and taken someone as an enemy for me?" Musa (a) then knew that the best of deeds is loving for God and hating for God..

Wilayat al-Faqih: Too Advanced for the Western Mind

A contemporary challenge Muslims face is finding the required insight to endure materialists' critique of Islamic political thought, especially as it pertains to leadership. This is seen among some within the Shi'a community and their views on the guardianship of the jurist. Not only does the Western mind package economic relief with secularism and the marginalization of religion in society as an attempt to expose the 'injustice' of Islamic governance, almost completely disregarding the role of war, sanctions and other means in helping paint that picture. But worse, it presents the jurist's extensive purview as an outdated, despotic model of authority when in fact the upright leadership of a highly religious scholar with widely acknowledged moral and spiritual traits is essentially beyond their cultural and ideological reach. That is, in a shocking twist, the guardianship of the jurist - as a model of leadership - is more advanced than any other model of leadership in the world..

Islamic Organizations & the Language Crisis

What are Islamic organizations in the West doing to solve the language barrier crisis Muslims in their communities are experiencing? This is a main factor in the decline of believers' faith and the failure of Western Muslim communities on the ideological front. Many of those who work or are involved in religious education and community guidance hardly speak Arabic, usually basing their involvement on personal 'research' or views they find more suitable for life in the West; and most of the believing public in the West simply follow. What projects are being designed and what strategies are being implemented to address the decline in basic acquaintance with Arabic? What is being done to ensure that this decline does not correlate with a decline in public Islamic knowledge? This is not a marginal issue at all..

Why is Islamic Publishing Being Filtered?

What exactly is the excuse for Islamic books being selected for translation according to their political or ideological suitability for the Western setting? Does this serve Islam or the same flawed interpretations of it that Islamic publishing conceptually means to correct? There are already enough efforts to handpick the ideas, authors or books that oppose the mainstream religious and political narratives of the Shi'a, and arrange them as an equally legitimate interpretation of the doctrine available for believers who do not speak Arabic. What is needed is a presentation of Islamic truths as they are; an introduction to pure Islam and not outlying versions of it that sing along in the Western arena; an emphasis on the axioms and principles that make Islam a paradigm worthy of the faith and belonging of societies..

The West is Perfect for Ideological Chaos

A brother who lives in the West told me one of the scholars in his city is a 'staunch reformist' who always attacks our narrations and jurists' views. I told him to challenge the scholar with debate and not mere discussion, although the latter is the more productive method. He was taken aback but did so anyway. As soon as he did, the scholar said to him: "We went to the seminary and studied for years; where have you studied?" The brother told me later that he froze and did not know what to say, then he realized the irony in such a response: How could such a response come from someone who complains of that reasoning? People of these views go to the West because that is where their arguments can echo without being met with humbling refutation from actual experts who studied at the seminary for even more years. That is where they can seek popularity; where they can adopt political opinions against not only basic Islamic principles but innate human nature under excuses like freedom of opinion; where they can criticize an absent opponent. The West is perfect for ideological chaos..

Liberal Muslims: Apologetic & Unimpressed

Any stance by jurists on ideological trends that are against Islam are quickly 'disqualified' by apologists who argue the definition of the trend resisted by those jurists is outdated or inaccurate. Here is an idea: decide what the definition is once and for all, or be silent. When a jurist writes against secularism debunking it as a notion but also proving it is essentially at odds with Islam, 'secular Muslims' claim there are other - more recent - conceptualizations of secularism, with implications that are reconcilable with Islamic thought. The same goes for when Islamic scholars take stances against feminism - its examples and real-life manifestations. Often the reaction is that 'feminism has different forms and meanings and cannot simply be rejected like that'. Nothing is actual or concrete. All is relative..

Why Seculars Deny the Attack on Sayedah al-Zahra' (a)

The reason why some have a negligent urge to deny the attack on the sacred home or other events of transgression against Sayeda al-Zahraa (a) is that she was the clearest historical example of the lengths true believers must go in their defense of legitimate Islamic authority. This is inconvenient for those interested, whether openly or secretly, in secular Islam. The idea of charismatic advocacy for truth and virtue at the expense of all one possesses is worrisome to those whose corrupt designs require the strategic dismantling of such awareness. If this is only at a degree of 'awareness', then imagine the force such an example stirs when it is acknowledged as a religious axiom, a doctrinal reality, and a remembered property of the people of truth throughout history. Oppressors fear her to this day and always will..

Ignoring Patterns is Unintellectual

The so-called secular Muslim claims to approach Islamic history intellectually, but isolates each Imam's lifetime from that of the other, and from the lives of the Prophets (a) including the Prophet of Islam (s). There is nothing intellectual about purposefully ignoring patterns. Doing so is the exact opposite of 'intellectual'. It is ignorant and enlightens no one. Rather, it conceals from people the central message that God has always been delivering. Ironically, this view brands itself as one that is interested in moving knowledge forward. But the fact is that ignoring patterns amounts to rejecting new knowledge, which is essentially unscientific. Today, the staunch extremists and the progressive modernists among the Shi'a both make this mistake as they have based their doctrines on skipping over the jurists..

The Gates of Entry

Faith is a sanctuary; a mosque of many gates. Different people - due to their different interests, backgrounds, and experiences - enter faith and become religiously committed through different gates. Some may enter through a talent, such as those who are blessed with a beautiful voice and begin reciting. Others perhaps enter through political circumstances that helped them identify the position of religion and join the social awakening around them. The examples are many; and much can be understood about people years and years after they become religious if one merely heeds the gate through which others entered. How those people developed views, approached disagreement, and chose their company all begins to make sense. We should all ask ourselves what our fountain of thought is. Where have we been drinking from?

Disrespecting Scholars

Those who are influenced early on by 'religious' discourse filled with closedminded rhetoric and disrespect towards scholars tend to build an imaginary credal identity that is far from the intrinsic human nature and the manners it commands believers to develop and maintain. The narrations tell us the believer should always be in a state between fear and hope. Losing hope means falling into despair. Losing fear of God means believing one has done enough and is all set for success. Both are wrong and dangerous. But since the issue here is with the second problem, let me be brief: one who is 'between fear and hope' does not consider himself chosen by God's hands or safe enough to insult scholars and believers, or approach disagreements with street manners..

Holiday Season & the Recreation of Spirituality

This is no attack on the holidays themselves, let alone the religious value that people of other faiths see in them. But because it can certainly be argued with some evidence and conviction that religion has little to do with these holidays to begin with (if any at all), then it becomes incumbent upon us to consider the political and ideological element in these holidays' effects and cultural manifestations. This is less about the Islamic ruling on decorating, or whether the holiday themes are indeed cozy, or any of the aesthetics many simply find appealing. This is more about where these all fall in the vision of a 'global empire' and the social model it seeks to prove possible: one that boasts independence to a degree of insanity. Remember that the simplified message of godless systems is that human societies do not need revelation: that people do not need the values revelation teaches, nor the laws revelation mandates, nor the rituals and practices revelation prescribes for human success and prosperity in this life and the next. It is this arrogant claim of independence from God, and this betrayal of the immaterial that forms the basis of the inclusive experiment pondering: with enough motive and the necessary resources, can a society that rejects divine guidance still manage? Can spirituality be recreated?