Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Truth & Awareness about Al-Aqsa Masjid

Truth & Awareness about Al-Aqsa Masjid

Dear Muslims, Please make sure you and your children know which is the real Masjid Al-Aqsa. Because most of the times media & internet related informations provides the wrong information about Masjid Al-Aqsa.
In Islam Al-Aqsa is one of the three most sacred places after Mecca and Medina. And even then many of us are not aware about its real picture. Please read below & pass this to all your friends & family members. May Allah (SWT) reward all of us.
Many Muslims think the Al-Sakhrah Masjid also known as the "Dome of the rock" is the Al-Aqsa Masjid!!! THIS IS NOT AT ALL TRUE!!! The only truth is that Al-Sakhrah Masjid is near to the Al-Aqsa Masjid. Even if you search for "Al Aqsa" in "Google Images", most images shown will be the pictures of "Dome of the rock" & not the real Al-Aqsa Masjid. The main reason behind this is public ignorance.
 
The Al-Sakhrah Masjid!!
(Also known as the "Dome of the rock", NOT the Al-Aqsa Masjid)

The Al-Sakhrah Masjid - Also known as the "Dome of the 
rock"
 
The Real Al-Aqsa Masjid
(One of the three most sacred places after Mecca and Medina)
The Real Al-Aqsa Masjid

The Real Al-Aqsa Masjid near by Al-Sakhrah Masjid
 


In Islam Al-Aqsa is one of the three most sacred places after Mecca and Medina, where the Prophet Muhammad (saw) led salat with all the prophets, from Adam (AS) to Isa (AS).
Many people have pictures in their homes showing the wrong Masjid in name of Al-Aqsa Masjid!! Please make sure you and your children, your friends all know which is the real Masjid Al Aqsa.
Know More:
History of Al-Aqsa Masjid

Al-Aqsa Masjid in Wikipedia
http://www.jsyedali.com/islamic_articles/al-aqsa_awareness.php
 


Quraanic Duaas

Quraanic Duaas

Duaa to Limit the Burden:
رَبَّنَا لاَ تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِن نَّسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لاَ طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَآ أَنتَ مَوْلاَنَا فَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ

"Our Lord! Put not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Pardon us and grant us Forgiveness. Have mercy on us. You are our Maula (Patron, Supporter and Protector, etc.) and give us victory over the disbelieving people." (Al_Quraan_002. 286)
Duaa to Cure from Diseases:
رَبَّهُ أَنِّي مَسَّنِيَ الضُّرُّ وَأَنتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ
"O my Lord! Adversity has befallen me, and, of all the merciful ones, You are the Most Merciful." (Al_Quraan_021. 083)
Duaa on Death of someone:
إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ
"Surely we belong to Allah and to Him we shall surely return." (Al_Quraan_002. 156)
Duaa for Education & Knowledge & Task:
رَّبِّ زِدْنِي عِلْمًا
"My Lord! Increase me in knowledge." (Al_Quraan_020. 114)
رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِّن لِّسَانِي يَفْقَهُواقَوْلِي
O my Lord! Open for me my chest. * And ease my task for me. * And make loose the knot from my tongue, that they understand my speech." (Al_Quraan_020. 025-028)
Duaa for Forgiveness:
لَّا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ
"None has the right to be worshipped but You (O Allah), Glorified (and Exalted) are You. Truly, I have been of the wrong-doers." (Al_Quraan_021. 087)
رَّبِّ اغْفِرْ وَارْحَمْ وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الرَّاحِمِينَ
"My Lord! Forgive and have mercy, for You are the Best of those who show mercy!" (Al_Quraan_023.118)
رَبَّنَا مَا خَلَقْتَ هَذا بَاطِلاً سُبْحَانَكَ فَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ رَبَّنَا إِنَّكَ مَن تُدْخِلِ النَّارَ فَقَدْ أَخْزَيْتَهُ وَمَا لِلظَّالِمِينَ مِنْ أَنصَارٍ رَّبَّنَا إِنَّنَا سَمِعْنَا مُنَادِيًا يُنَادِي لِلإِيمَانِ أَنْ آمِنُواْ بِرَبِّكُمْ فَآمَنَّا رَبَّنَا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَكَفِّرْ عَنَّا سَيِّئَاتِنَا وَتَوَفَّنَا مَعَ الأبْرَارِ رَبَّنَا وَآتِنَا مَا وَعَدتَّنَا عَلَى رُسُلِكَ وَلاَ تُخْزِنَا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ إِنَّكَ لاَ تُخْلِفُ الْمِيعَادَ
"Our Lord! You have not created (all) this without purpose, glory to You! (Exalted be You above all that they associate with You as partners). Give us salvation from the torment of the Fire. *Our Lord! Verily, whom You admit to the Fire, indeed, You have disgraced him, and never will the Zaalimoon (polytheists and wrong-doers) find any helpers. *Our Lord! Verily, we have heard the call of one (Muhammad p.b.u.h.) calling to Faith: 'Believe in your Lord,' and we have believed. *Our Lord! Forgive us our sins and remit from us our evil deeds, and make us die in the state of righteousness along with Al-Abraar (those who are obedient to Allah and follow strictly His Orders). *Our Lord! Grant us what You promised unto us through Your Messengers and disgrace us not on the Day of Resurrection, for You never break (Your) Promise." (Al_Quraan_003. 191-194)
رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا آمَنَّا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ
"Our Lord! We have indeed believed, so forgive us our sins and save us from the punishment of the Fire." (Al_Quraan_003. 016)
رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
"Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. If You forgive us not, and bestow not upon us Your Mercy, we shall certainly be of the losers." (Al_Quraan_007. 023)
رَبَّنَا لَا تَجْعَلْنَا مَعَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ 
"Our Lord! Place us not among the people who have been guilty of evildoing." (Al_Quraan_007. 047)
رَبِّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ أَسْأَلَكَ مَا لَيْسَ لِي بِهِ عِلْمٌ وَإِلاَّ تَغْفِرْ لِي وَتَرْحَمْنِي أَكُن مِّنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
"O my Lord! I seek refuge with You from asking You that of which I have no knowledge. And unless You forgive me and have Mercy on me, I would indeed be one of the losers." (Al_Quraan_011. 047)
رَبَّنَا آمَنَّا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الرَّاحِمِينَ
"Our Lord! We believe, so forgive us, and have mercy on us, for You are the Best of all who show mercy!" (Al_Quraan_023. 109)
رَبَّنَا اكْشِفْ عَنَّا الْعَذَابَ إِنَّا مُؤْمِنُونَ 
"Our Lord! Relieve us of the torment, for we do really believe." (Al_Quraan_044. 012)
رَبَّنَا اغْفِرْ لَنَا وَلِإِخْوَانِنَا الَّذِينَ سَبَقُونَا بِالْإِيمَانِ وَلَا تَجْعَلْ فِي قُلُوبِنَا غِلًّا لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا رَبَّنَا إِنَّكَ رَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ 
"Our Lord! Forgive us our sins as well as those of our brethren who proceeded us in faith and let not our hearts entertain any unworthy thoughts or feelings against [any of] those who have believed. Our Lord! You are indeed full of kindness and Most Merciful." (Al_Quraan_059. 010)
رَبَّنَا عَلَيْكَ تَوَكَّلْنَا وَإِلَيْكَ أَنَبْنَا وَإِلَيْكَ الْمَصِيرُ 
"Our Lord! In You we have placed our trust, and to You do we turn in repentance, for unto You is the end of all journeys." (Al_Quraan_060. 004)
رَبَّنَا أَتْمِمْ لَنَا نُورَنَا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ۖ إِنَّكَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ 
"Our Lord! Perfect our light for us and forgive us our sins, for verily You have power over all things." (Al_Quraan_066. 008)
Duaa for Forgiveness, Patience and Victory:
رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ
"Our Lord! Pour forth on us patience and make us victorious over the disbelieving people." (Al_Quraan_002. 250)
ربَّنَا اغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَإِسْرَافَنَا فِي أَمْرِنَا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ
"Our Lord! Forgive us our sins and our transgressions (in keeping our duties to You), establish our feet firmly, and give us victory over the disbelieving folk." (Al_Quraan_003. 147)
رَبَّنَا وَسِعْتَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ رَحْمَةً وَعِلْمًا فَاغْفِرْ لِلَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَاتَّبَعُوا سَبِيلَكَ وَقِهِمْ عَذَابَ الْجَحِيمِ 
رَبَّنَا وَأَدْخِلْهُمْ جَنَّاتِ عَدْنٍ الَّتِي وَعَدْتَهُمْ وَمَنْ صَلَحَ مِنْ آبَائِهِمْ وَأَزْوَاجِهِمْ وَذُرِّيَّاتِهِمْ ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ 
"Our Lord! You embrace all things within Your Grace and Knowledge, forgive those who repent and follow Your path, and ward off from them the punishment of Hell. Our Lord! Make them enter the Garden of Eden which You have promised to them, and to the righteous from among their fathers, their wives and their offspring, for verily You are alone the Almighty and the truly Wise." (Al_Quraan_040. 007-008)
Duaa for Covering the Grave:
 مِنْهَا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ وَفِيهَا نُعِيدُكُمْ وَمِنْهَا نُخْرِجُكُمْ تَارَةً أُخْرَى
From it We created you and into it We shall send you back and from it will We raise you a second time. (Al_Quraan_020. 055)
Duaa for Guidance & Mercy: Ya Allah Help only Ya Allah Help:
 رَبَّنَا لاَ تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ
"Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate (from the truth) after You have guided us, and grant us mercy from You. Truly, You are the Bestower." (Al_Quraan_003. 008)
Duaa for Headache:
 لَا يُصَدَّعُونَ عَنْهَا وَلَا يُنزِفُونَ
They shall not be affected with headache thereby, nor shall they get exhausted. (Al_Quraan_056. 019)
Duaa for HelpYa Allah Help only Ya Allah Help:
 إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ
You alone we worship; You alone we ask for help. (Al_Quraan_001. 005)
 رَبَّنَا لاَ تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ
Our Lord! make not our hearts to deviate after Thou hast guided us aright, and grant us from Thee mercy; surely Thou art the most liberal Giver. (Al_Quraan_003. 008)
Duaa for Kids & Wives:
رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَاجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّاتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا
O our Lord! grant us in our wives and our children the joy of our eyes, and make us guides to those who guard (against evil). (Al_Quraan_025. 074)
Duaa to get Kids:
رَبِّ هَبْ لِي مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ
"My Lord, grant me righteous children." (Al_Quraan_037. 100)
رَبِّ لَا تَذَرْنِي فَرْدًا وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الْوَارِثِينَ
"O My Lord! Leave me not single (childless), though You are the Best of the inheritors." (Al_Quraan_021. 089)
رَبِّ هَبْ لِي مِن لَّدُنْكَ ذُرِّيَّةً طَيِّبَةً إِنَّكَ سَمِيعُ الدُّعَاء
"O my Lord! Grant me from You, a good offspring (Child). You are indeed the All-Hearer of invocation." (Al_Quraan_003. 038)
Duaa for Mercy: Ya Allah Help only Ya Allah Help:
رَبَّنَا آتِنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً وَهَيِّئْ لَنَا مِنْ أَمْرِنَا رَشَدًا
"Our Lord! Bestow on us mercy from Yourself, and facilitate for us our affair in the right way!" (Al_Quraan_018. 010)
Duaa for Migration:
رَّبِّ أَدْخِلْنِي مُدْخَلَ صِدْقٍ وَأَخْرِجْنِي مُخْرَجَ صِدْقٍ وَاجْعَل لِّي مِن لَّدُنكَ سُلْطَانًا نَّصِيرًا
"My Lord! Let my entry (to the city of Al-Madinah) be good, and likewise my exit (from the city of Makkah) be good. And grant me from You an authority to help me (or a firm sign or a proof)." (Al_Quraan_017. 080)
Duaa for Misfortune (Lost someone or some valuables): Ya Allah Help only Ya Allah Help:
إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ
"Surely we belong to Allah and to Him we shall surely return." (Al_Quraan_002. 156)
Duaa for Parents:
رَّبِّ ارْحَمْهُمَا كَمَا رَبَّيَانِي صَغِيرًا
"My Lord, have mercy on them, for they have raised me from infancy." (Al_Quraan_017. 024)
Duaa for Patience, Die as Muslims & Misfortune (Lost someone or some valuables):
إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ
"Surely we belong to Allah and to Him we shall surely return." (Al_Quraan_002. 156)
رَبِّنَا لَمَّا جَاءتْنَا رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ
"Our Lord! pour out on us patience, and cause us to die as Muslims." (Al_Quraan_007. 126)
Duaa for Protection from Shayateen (Devils), Magic etc.:
رَّبِّ أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ هَمَزَاتِ الشَّيَاطِينِ وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ رَبِّ أَن يَحْضُرُونِ
"My Lord! I seek refuge with You from the whisperings (suggestions) of the Shayatin (devils). And I seek refuge with You, My Lord! lest they may attend (or come near) me." (Al_Quraan_023. 097-098)
بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
 قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ
 مِن شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ
 وَمِن شَرِّ غَاسِقٍ إِذَا وَقَبَ
 وَمِن شَرِّ النَّفَّاثَاتِ فِي الْعُقَدِ
 وَمِن شَرِّ حَاسِدٍ إِذَا حَسَدَ
Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of the dawn, From the evil of what He has created, And from the evil of the utterly dark night when it comes, And from the evil of those who blow on knots, And from the evil of the envious when he envies (Al_Quraan_113. 001-005)
بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
 قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ
 مَلِكِ النَّاسِ
 إِلَهِ النَّاسِ
 مِن شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ
 الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ
 مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَ النَّاسِ
Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of men, The King of men, The god of men, From the evil of the whisperings of the slinking (Shaitan), Who whispers into the hearts of men, From among the jinn and the men. (Al_Quraan_114. 001-006)
 اللّهُ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ لاَ تَأْخُذُهُ سِنَةٌ وَلاَ نَوْمٌ لَّهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الأَرْضِ مَن ذَا الَّذِي يَشْفَعُ عِنْدَهُ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِهِ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ وَلاَ يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِ إِلاَّ بِمَا شَاء وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضَ وَلاَ يَؤُودُهُ حِفْظُهُمَا وَهُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْعَظِيمُ
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. (Al_Quraan_002. 255)
Duaa to Start any Act including Worships:
بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. (Al_Quraan_001. 001)
Duaa for Success from Disbelievers:
نَصْرٌ مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَفَتْحٌ قَرِيبٌ وَبَشِّرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ
help from Allah and a victory near at hand; and give good news to the believers. (Al_Quraan_061. 013)
Duaa to Save from Disbelievers:
رَبِّ نَجِّنِي مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ
My Lord! deliver me from the unjust people. (Al_Quraan_028. 021)
رَبَّنَا لاَ تَجْعَلْنَا فِتْنَةً لِّلْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ وَنَجِّنَا بِرَحْمَتِكَ مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ
"Our Lord! Make us not a trial for the folk who are Zaalimoon. And save us by Your Mercy from the disbelieving folk." (Al_Quraan_010. 085-086)
Duaa for Tawakkal on Allah (Allah is Sufficient for Me): Ya Allah Help only Ya Allah Help:
حَسْبِيَ اللّهُ لا إِلَهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ وَهُوَ رَبُّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيمِ
"Allah is sufficient for me. Laa ilaaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), in Him I put my trust and He is the Lord of the Mighty Throne." (Al_Quraan_009. 129)
Duaa to Thank Allah:
 الْحَمْدُ للّهِ
Praise be to Allah. (Al_Quraan_001. 002)
Duaa in Trouble: Ya Allah Help only Ya Allah Help:
 إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ
You alone we worship; You alone we ask for help. (Al_Quraan_001. 005)
رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ
"Our Lord! pour out on us patience, and cause us to die as Muslims." (Al_Quraan_007. 126)
Duaa for Wives & Kids:
رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَاجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّاتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا
O our Lord! grant us in our wives and our children the joy of our eyes, and make us guides to those who guard (against evil). (Al_Quraan_025. 074)
Duaa for this World and the Hereafter Generally We Recite in the Salaat:
 رَبِّ اجْعَلْنِي مُقِيمَ الصَّلاَةِ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِي رَبَّنَا وَتَقَبَّلْ دُعَاء
"O my Lord! Make me one who performs As-Salaat (Iqaamat-as- Salaat), and (also) from my offspring, our Lord! And accept my invocation." (Al_Quraan_014. 040)
 رَبَّنَا اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِوَالِدَيَّ وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَوْمَ يَقُومُ الْحِسَابُ
"Our Lord! Forgive me and my parents, and (all) the believers on the Day when the reckoning will be established." (Al_Quraan_014. 041)
رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ
"Our Lord! Give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire!" (Al_Quraan_002. 201)
Duaa for Praise to Allah & Peace be upon Messenger:
 سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ
 وَسَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ
 وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Glory be to your Lord, the Lord of Honor, above what they describe. And peace be on the messengers. And all praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. (Al_Quraan_037. 180-182)
Source: Mohd. Jafar Abuhuseina - www.bhatkallys.com
Source:http://www.jsyedali.com/islamic_articles/quraanic_duaas.php

The microbphilosophiser

The microbphilosophiser

I introduce myself as a Philosophiser; who is not a 'philosopher' (I, certainly not), but love to see things in a philosophical point of view. I would argue that philosophy is a product of the processes involved in social living and so, can be applied to organisms adapting to a colonial living at any level. Ok, now what is microbphilosophy? The answer is, as a biologist, the very exiting thing I get to work with is the microbes and I would like to view microbial life in a philosophical prespective. I see the microbes as the philosophers. But, how?

Nature 2007, 445,533
As I work with these little bugs, I got fascinated about how these single celled organisms organize themselves for a communal living, the so called biofilms. These are surface associated microbial communities enclosed in a self synthesised polymeric matrix. We encounter biofilms at every walk of our life starting from our very essential habit of brushing the teeth to remove the biofilm formed on the tooth surface. 

PNAS 2005, 102(31), 11036

I always get exited to see under the microscope, the beautiful architectures they make at the micrometer scale. When I got in to the literature, I learnt about a variety of processes involved in such architectures and they are governed with certain laws. The ability of them to communicate with each other, the brilliant design they adapt, sharing of labor, etc. made scientists to propose the biofilms as a multicellular system. Altruism, canibalism, fractricide are few example behaviors people have studied in biofilm systems. As I said earlier, philosophy is a product of the processes involved in a social or communal living; we can lean philosophy from these microorganisms which are also adapting to a communal form of living and so here I write microbphilosophy. 

I am not a very regular blogger. I do blog occasionally and most of them were in my native language (Tamil). This is a blog where I would like to experiment my English together with an interactive sharing of scientific and philosophic insights both from literature and personal experiences. Through this blog, I expect not only to share but also enrich the understanding of  biology and life in a better way. I would like to welcome the participation of the readers of this blog to catalyze this process and make the learning joyful.



Source :http://themicrobphilosophy.blogspot.com/The microbphilosophiser
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Mini Kick Scooter - BLUE, for kids age 3-5, winner of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold and Platinum Award Seals 2009 - ALSO available in Aqua, Orange and Pink

MOGOGO – a standing proof for our ancient trade since 3 millennium B.C.

Two months before, it was an accident I, with a goup of foreign people went on for a dinner to MOGOGO, an Ethiopian restaurent. MOGOGO is situated near Osterport in Copenhegan, Denmark. The hall booked for us was dressed-up so ancient, as if we were in a furnished cave. There was little light and the African orchestra was engaging us through those hidden speakers. We tried to add contrast to the music with our timid laughters and fuzzy cross talks. There was a clap, followed by “Welcome to MOGOGO” the host announced that we are now in Ethiopia and we are supposed to stick to the Ethiopian way of dining. Here are the rules; You will be served a menu of traditional Ethiopian food in big plates. The size of the plates stay suffecient to serve 4 people sit together and enjoy the great dinner. You will not be accompaned with fork, kife or a spoon for that matter. Your fingers do the job. That’s the Ethiopian style. The dictation was over with a great smile. There were shocks and surprizes, “Fingers???” except us, three Indians in the team. Here is the extra tip, “Are there any Indians among you,” “Yes” raised our voices. She added, “you have a surprise about the food, wait and see…!” We were waiting. It took some time until the surprises dissolved in air and the great king, Christian IV came in as the topic of the table. Then came, those huge plates decoreated with some lathery, fragile circular dish that looks smillar to our AAPPAM(DOSA)!! Myself, an Indian frined, a chinese PhD student and a Danish professor were on our ONE PLATE. The salad was served with some spinach, tomato mixed with olive, pepper and salt in the middle of the plate and then came the gravy. Myself and the Indian friend opted for a vegetarian stuff and so were tomotos and carrots in the place of chicken and lamb. Our fingers went on eazy, picked up a little of the DOSA like dish and moved some gravy in to it, engaged our tongue. To my surprize the food was not at all alien. My Indian friends eyes too shared the simillar surprize. “ Hey..!!! This is more Indian” yelled, my friend. Next to me, our Dane and the Chinese counterparts were struggling to engage their fingers, still to tast it were on a pause!
Yes, that was a typical Indian flavour. The taste matched exactly our home land. The lady of the restaurent was enjoying our eyes expanding. “Yes,” she says with a long smile, “it is your people long, long ago used to travel the Red Sea for trade. They have to halt at Ethiopia before they meet their Egypt friends. They introduced the spices to us and that’s how we have the same flavour. So, that’s the surprize, what I quoted for you!”


That was a nice feeling. A great history was before us that tasted delicious. I remembered the schoolday stories told by our literature teachers that our forefathers had a well built maritime and a great network of trade around the world. We had established contacts and commerce with the Egyptians in those old, old days. We traveled the red sea all along with our valuables, etc… etc… We know this through a handfull of archiological findings and the texts in our literature. Now, here is a live proof.
The next time, this week when am in copenhegan, I did not miss to show this to my other Indian friend came to visity me from Germany. This time, it was me compering about the food and our history. I wanted to share this with you all while I am savouring the proud history of our forefathers. Thanks MOGOGO. http://www.mogogo.dk/

Source : http://somethingithoughtabout.blogspot.com/2009/08/mogogo-standing-proof-for-our-ancient.html
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Corelle Livingware 16-Piece Dinnerware Set, Service for 4, Hot Dots

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

5. The First Zero-Gravity Surgery

5. The First Zero-Gravity Surgery




Source

A team of French doctors said they successfully operated on a man in near zero-gravity conditions on a flight looping in the air like a roller coaster to mimic weightlessness. The five-man team and the patient landed safely at an airport in southwestern France after a three-hour flight, although doctors said the midair surgery to remove a cyst from the man’s arm took only about 10 minutes. Chief surgeon Dominique Martin said the near zero-gravity operation, the first on a human, was not that technically difficult, but was aimed at breaking a barrier in medical expertise.
4. Surgical Repair of a Herniating Heart: Ectopia Cordis

ectopia cordis

Source

Ectopia cordis (EC) is a rare malformation, occurring in 5.5–7.9 per million live births due to failure of maturation of the midline mesodermal components of the chest and abdomen such that heart remains outside the body.

Naseem Hasni was born by cesarean section on October 31st with his heart outside his chest. When Nazeem was born his heart, on the outside, the aorta went from his heart straight into his chest. Doctors wrapped his heart in Gore-Tex, plus a layer of his own skin, and gradually moved it inside his body. Doctors from the Holtz Children’s Hospital, Miami, Florida, USA, carried out corrective surgery on him and said the boy should be able to lead a nearly-normal life. He was in a ‘critical but stable’ condition. At birth, he weighed 9 pounds and 2 ounces, and was 21 inches long.

Dr. Eliot Rosenkranz, one of the surgeons who carried out the operation, said Naseem will have to avoid sports where a blow to the sternum may happen. But he will be able to take part in most other sports and activities. “Certainly the goal is as normal a childhood as he can achieve,” said Dr. Rosenkranz.

 Read more :http://www.smashinglists.com/5-biggest-surgical-successes/

Zakir Naik to challenge British Entry Ban

Mumbai: Mumbai-based Islamic scholar Zakir Naik yesterday said he plans to challenge the ban order on him by the British Home Office in British courts.

“The decision is politically motivated by the new government. My lawyers have already examined it in detail and we have a very strong case,” Naik, a 44-year old medico-turned preacher, said yesterday afternoon.

Naik’s lawyers in Britain plan to move the concerned courts early next week to get a reversal of the June 16 order of Home Secretary Theresa May, served on him a day before his scheduled departure to London (June 17).

If the courts grant a stay on or a reversal of the exclusion order, Naik is hopeful of gong ahead with the planned peace conference convened by him there next weekend, or else it would be cancelled.




Expressing outrage over the exclusion order, Naik said he has been giving religious lectures in Britain since the past 16 years besides holding a five-year visa to enter that country.

“I have traveled all over the world, but never before in my past 16 years, anywhere in the world have I faced such a situation. It is tantamount to a mockery of the freedom of speech and expression,” Naik said.

Terming the decision as “a politically motivated one,” he said that the new British government has been under pressure to ban persons indulging in radical propaganda.

Source: http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/india/54432-zakir-naik-to-challenge-britishentry-ban-.html


Related News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/10357263.stm
 

Why China struck n-deal with Pakistan 4 days after Indo-US deal

By Manish Chand, IANS,
New Delhi : China signed a deal with Pakistan for building two new nuclear reactors just four days after India and the US formally inked an agreement for implementing their 123 agreement, a pointer to the larger geopolitics behind the deal that has created anxieties in New Delhi and Washington and a fresh dilemma for the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
The timing of the deal reveals a larger strategic design on the part of China to use its all-weather ally Pakistan to contain the rise of India, and turns the spotlight firmly on Beijing's determination to defy global rules, if necessary, to create a counter-balance to New Delhi in South Asia.
According to sources in the know, an agreement for the Chashma-3 & Chashma-4 twin projects was signed on Oct 15, 2008, four days after India and the US formally inked their pact in Washington.
China and Pakistan signed a contract for the project on Nov 20, 2008. Another fuel supply guarantee agreement was signed Sep 30, 2009. After firming up various facets of the deal over two years in secrecy without informing the NSG, the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), China Zhongyuan Engineering Corporation (ZEC) and China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) signed an agreement on March 31, 2010, for the validation of contract for the 340 MW Chashma Nuclear Power Plant's twin units C-3 & C-4. The deal was made public by Beijing soon after.
China is trying to justify the deal on grounds that these two additional reactors were "grandfathered" under an earlier deal that predates its entry into the NSG in 2004 and has cited Islamabad's dire energy situation as a pretext for entering into this arrangement.
The argument is specious as China and Pakistan started negotiations over new nuclear reactors four years after it entered the 46-nation NSG. In an oblique reference to the deal, the NSG's June 21-25 plenary at Christchurch, New Zealand, has rightfully called for consultations and transparency about the deal.
But it will be tough to push it through the NSG, given Pakistan's dubious proliferation record epitomized by the A.Q. Khan network, says K. Subrahmanyam, a well-know strategic affairs expert who advised the Indian government on the nuclear deal with the US.
The NSG guidelines currently bar the transfer of atomic technology to countries which have not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a reference to India, Pakistan and Israel, the three holdout states against the NPT regime. However, the George Bush administration invested huge political capital to push for a one-time exemption for India, both in the US Congress and in the NSG, citing India's impeccable non-proliferation record.
During his visit to Pakistan shortly after the landmark visit to New Delhi in March 2006, Bush had told then Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf that India and Pakistan are two different countries with different needs and different histories, thus making it clear that Islamabad couldn't hope to get a similar nuclear deal from Washington.
The geopolitics of the China-Pakistan nuclear deal goes back to this explicit rejection by the US and a perception in China's power circles that the deal was designed to contain its rise.
This accounts for Beijing's hostility to the India-US deal right from the time it was struck July 18, 2005, and manifested itself in the last-minute failed attempt to block the waiver for India at the Sep 4-6, 2008, NSG special meeting.
At that time, Beijing had couched its opposition in terms of its impact on the global non-proliferation regime and insisted that it should not be discriminatory, a euphemism for a similar deal with its trusted ally Pakistan.
Now, Beijing is trying to subvert the same NSG rules in whose name it voiced its reservations over the India-US deal by giving a similar deal, albeit a much smaller one, to Pakistan, say experts.
China, after all, accounts for over 60 percent of Pakistan's military hardware exports and is the source of cutting-edge fighter jets and missile frigates. In a $6- billion deal, China is supplying its most advanced home-made combat aircraft, the third-generation J-10 fighter jets to Pakistan.
"The reasons are two-fold: one, Beijing is trying to project itself as a power on a par with the US which can rework global games for a friendly country like the US did for India and, secondly, it wants a piece of global nuclear pie," says Srikanth Kondapalli, a China expert at the Jawaharlal Nehru University here.
"China does not want to miss out on the burgeoning nuclear business. It is not content to be an importer of civil nuclear technology from countries like France, but it wants to be an exporter of atomic power technology. It's lucrative business, running into billions of dollars," Kondapalli told IANS.
But the larger target is the rise of India. "China wants a counterweight to the 123 agreement and to a rising India by keeping the latter confined to South Asia," says Kondapalli.
"In their own ways each is using the other to balance India as India's disputes with Pakistan keep it preoccupied, failing to attain its potential as a major regional and global player," says Harsh Pant, a strategic expert at King's College, London.
But there are serious hitches on the way. The deal became public in April shortly before US President Barack Obama convened the Nuclear Security Summit.
It remains to be seen how China plays the NSG over its Pakistan deal if it expects to be seen as a responsible stakeholder in the international system, say experts. A concerned India, meanwhile, has tapped friendly NSG countries to oppose the deal, but has tactfully maintained that such arrangements should be transparent and conform to existing NSG norms.
(29.06.2010-Manish Chand can be contacted at manish.c@ians.in)
http://twocircles.net/2010jun28/why_china_struck_n_deal_pakistan_4_days_after_indo_us_deal.html

Dry Fish curry

Dry Fish curry (Chhuri Shutki)
recipe image
Created by shahinbdboy,
Description If you never try this one then you may loose some tasty food in this world.
 
Ingredients
At a glance
Cuisine
Bangla
Main Ingredient
Fish
Course/Dish
Curry
Serves
4
  • Dry fish/Shutki 200 gm
  • oil 2 table spoon
  • onion slice 1 cup
  • garlic paste 1 tea spoon
  • turmeric powder 1 tea spoon
  • chili powder 2 tea spoon
  • salt as required
  • water as required
  • garlic slice 1 cup
  • potato slice 1 cup
  • green chili 5-6
  • tomato 1
Methods/steps
  1. Cut the dry fish in small pieces and soak it in cold water for 4-5 hour. Then the fish will become soft.
  2. Then soak again in hot water for ½ an hour and after that remove the fish bone.
  3. Put a pan on the burner and pour oil in the pan.
  4. Add onion slice in oil and fry for 3 minutes.
  5. Add all the spices and small amount of water and shutki and cook for 5 minutes.
  6. Now add green chili, tomato, small amount of water and cook for 20 minutes.
http://www.khanapinaa.com/rapidrecipe/dry-fish-curry-chhuri-shutki.html.htmlDry fish curry

Monday, June 28, 2010

'The Prophet Muhammad (saas), the holy person who guided the world history' documentary watched in Berlin - 09.05.2010 Germany

Directorate of National Opinion’s Berlin branch in Germany organized an event called the “Prophet Muhammad (saas), A Mercy for all the worlds and the Qur’an Recitation” on May 9th, 2010. The event held at the Tempodrom, one of the biggest halls of Berlin, and attended by three thousand people, Mr. Adnan Oktar’s documentary titled "The Prophet Muhammad (saas), the holy person who guided the world history" was watched. You can also watch other Harun Yahya documentaries about our Prophet (saas) from here and you can get futher information about the good morality, outward appearance and miracles of our Prophet (saas) from www.theProphetMuhammad.org/ web site.











Click for Conferences and Fairs
http://wwwhttp://www.harunyahyaimpact.com/konferansDetay.php?konferansId=356mpact.com/konferansDetay.php?konferansId=356

Of the Quran Digital Flash-----المصحف الرقمي الفلاشي



Digital Quran Flash
  
المصحف الرقمي الفلاشي

المصحف الرقمي الفلاشي

المصحف الرقمي الفلاشي

Mohamed Ali Mosque

Mohamed Ali Mosque

Mohamed Ali Basha Mosque that was built in 1848 on the top of Mokattam mountain inside Saladin citadel. It's one of the most outstanding landmarks of old Cairo. If you every visited Egypt, you must pay it a visit!
http://clear-photos.blogspot.com/2009/11/mohamed-ali-mosque.html
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This is the Mohamed Ali mosque (not the boxer but the ruler of Egypt from 1805 to 1849), also called the Alabaster mosque.
It is located on the highest point inside the courtyard of the citadel of Saladin, in Cairo (Egypt).
The very same mosque is based in Istanbul (Sultan Ahamed mosque), as the builder of the one in Egypt was the Turkish Yousf Boushnaq.
At the beginning you can see (middle part of the picture the 10 first seconds) the city of the dead: old cemeteries now occupied by poor people (more than 5 million Egyptians live there due to the housing crisis).
By the end of the movie you can observe the Sultan Hassan mosque as well.
Egyptian music in background.

Aging and Related Changes-1

Palaniappan Kandaswamy

Aging and Related Changes-1

It is a very interesting phenomenon to watch the mental changes of a person as he advances in age. The pity is that he firmly believes that he has not changed even a bit. If anyone makes the sad mistake of pointing this deficiency, it is better to watch your step. Nobody accepts that he has changed due to age especially on the negative side.
The audibility is the first casualty. When you say something from his back, he invariably turns and says “eh! What is that?” You have to repeat what you have said earlier. One does not have any hesitation to wear specs but everybody seems to have great embarrassment to wear a hearing aid. This is in spite of the fact that hearing aids have become much sophisticated nowadays. They are almost invisible to a casual observer.
It is very distressing to note the suffering of such individuals in a gathering. Somebody asks for something and this man catches only a phrase of it and goes on tangentially. The other man is perplexed. Those who know his defect and watching this affair are helpless. It is an all round embarrassment.
On the domestic side, his family has to endure an everlasting ordeal. Unless the man gets reconciled to the inevitable, there will be all round misery. He doesn’t  keep quiet. He wants to know what others are talking about. It becomes very difficult to tell him the subject matter. Whenever he finds two people talking in a low voice, he gets a suspicion that they are talking only about him. This doubt never gets out of his mind. So his domestic harmony is shattered.
Aged people should understand their position and adjust to the changes magnanimously. Then only they can be happy and also make others happy.
Source : http://pkswamy.blogspot.com/2009/11/aging-and-related-changes-1.html

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Muslims contributions to science



Starting around 750 AD, science flourished under the Abbasid caliphs of Baghdad, gradually spreading its influence as far west as Spain and eastwards into Central Asia, over a period of more than 600 years.


By drawing on a variety of texts - Greek, Indian and Persian - and translating them into Arabic, the early scholars accumulated the greatest body of scientific knowledge in the world and built on it through their own discoveries.


Often, there was a practical Islamic relevance. Astronomy could be used to work out the direction of prayer. Mathematics was needed for dividing property according to the Islamic law of inheritance.


Although science flourished under Arab-Islamic patronage, by no means all the important figures in science were Muslims, or even Arabs.


The common factor, however, was the Arabic language, which for a time became the international language of science. It was only later, in the 12th and 13th centuries, when the Arabic works began to be translated into Latin, that such knowledge passed to the west.

The amazing ginger

Check out this SlideShare Presentation: The amazing ginger


http://reflections4muslimahs.blogspot.com/2010/06/amazing-ginger.html

Think Health, Not Drugs

Think Health, Not Drugs

The International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, which falls on 26th June, is a grim reminder of the detrimental effects of drug abuse which is destroying lives, encouraging crimes and threatening economic development all over the world. The theme for this year's drug campaign is 'Think Health, Not Drugs,' with the aim to to sensitize the people in general and the youth in particular, to the harms of using drugs. Read more

Source : http://www.citizen-news.org/2010/06/think-health-not-drugs.html

Those who eat brown rice may have less diabetes

Those who eat brown rice may have less diabetes

brown rice
Among rice lovers, people who eat brown rice or other whole grains seem to have a lower risk of developing diabetes than those who eat white rice, Boston-based researchers said on Monday.
Health
Among more than 197,000 US adults followed for up to 22 years, they found that eating more refined white rice was associated with a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, while eating more brown rice was associated with a lower risk of the disease.
Type 2 diabetes is characterized by high blood sugar levels caused by the body's inability to process sugar properly. The illness can sometimes be controlled through diet and exercise but may also require drugs.
"In general, the public should pay special attention to their carbohydrate intake and try to replace refined carbohydrates, including white rice, with whole grains," Dr. Qi Sun, of Harvard School of Public Health and Brigham and Women's Hospital, told Reuters Health by email. Current US dietary guidelines recommend that at least half of carbohydrates in the diet come from whole grains.
More Americans are eating rice, Sun and colleagues note in their report. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, rice consumption has shot up more than threefold since the 1930s. However, most of the rice eaten by Americans is refined white rice, which is stripped of its fiber, vitamins and minerals in the refining process and is more likely to fuel an increase in blood sugar after eating than its healthier whole grain cousin, brown rice.
The Boston team assessed rice intake and diabetes risk among nearly 40,000 men and more than 157,000 women in three long-running studies of doctors and nurses. Altogether, 10,507 of them developed type 2 diabetes during follow up.
Across all three studies, having more white rice in the diet was associated with an elevated risk of type 2 diabetes, the researchers report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
When they pooled the data and took into account various diet and lifestyle factors that might influence the results, the doctors and nurses who ate the most white rice (at least 5 servings per week) had a significant 17 percent higher risk of developing diabetes than those who ate the least white rice (less than 1 serving a month).
In contrast, eating 2 or more servings of brown rice each week, as opposed to less than 1 serving a month, was associated with an 11 percent reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Again, this was after accounting for other diet and lifestyle factors that might influence the results. The protective effect seen for higher brown rice consumption was "not dramatic, albeit significant," Sun said.
The researchers estimate that replacing one third of a serving of white rice daily (about 50 grams) with the same amount of brown rice could lower a person's risk of getting type 2 diabetes by 16 percent. They further estimate that replacing white rice with whole grains as a group could be associated with a risk reduction as great as 36 percent.
It's important to note that white rice contributed less than 2 percent of total calories for study subjects; brown rice less than 1 percent. Given that rice was not a significant part of the diet, there could be other reasons for the findings, the researchers acknowledge. But Sun pointed out that they adjusted for numerous factors that might influence the results and the findings still held up.
It's also possible that eating more brown rice is a marker for a healthier lifestyle. And, in fact, the brown rice eaters in the study did have a more health-conscious lifestyle and diet.
However, Sun said, "we adjusted for these factors including body adiposity (fat), smoking, physical activity, and other dietary factors, and the significant associations remained. This suggests that what we observed is unlikely the result of other factors."
The consistency of the results across all 3 studies also suggests that the findings are unlikely to be due to chance, Sun and colleagues note in their report.
Type 2 diabetes, which is closely linked to being overweight as well as poor diet and lack of exercise, is reaching epidemic levels. An estimated 8 percent of the U.S. population, and 180 million people around the world, now suffer from diabetes.
"From a public health point of view, replacing refined grains such as white rice by whole grains, including brown rice, should be recommended to facilitate the prevention of type 2 diabetes," Sun and colleagues conclude.
In addition to the study's funding by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, Sun is supported by a postdoctoral fellowship from Unilever Corporate Research. Unilever owns a number of food product brands.
Source: reuters.com
Source : http://www.tebyan.net/social/health/2010/6/16/127757.html

A developing Islamic University in Rotterdam

By Jan Felix Engelhardt,
Rotterdam, Netherlands - Tural Koç is feeling rather pleased with himself. The administrative head of the Islamic University of Rotterdam (IUR) has just taken a major step towards gaining state approval for his university. Following close consideration of content and formal requirements, the Dutch accreditation authority has now granted official recognition to the first IUR course.
Students taking the Masters programme in "Islamic Spiritual Counselling" are now able to qualify with a state-recognised degree. This, Koç believes, shows that the university is well on its way to fulfilling its aim of creating a Muslim academic elite in the Netherlands.
It is a goal that the Islamic University has been pursuing since taking up residence in the centre of Rotterdam in 2003. Its close proximity to a Reformed church and a Catholic church is a reminder that educational, health and social institutions were traditionally organised according to confession in the Netherlands.
"We are working on integrating a Muslim element into the Dutch social structure," explains Koç. The IUR is intended as part of this process. And whether or not the school can be part of the process in the long term depends very much on official recognition.
In order to achieve this, those involved with the Islamic University are pulling out all the stops in their interactions with other institutions dealing with integration issues. Together, they organise events to promote interfaith dialogue, celebrate the end of Ramadan, arrange conferences on tolerance in Islam and maintain close contact with representatives from churches and the government. The motivating force behind all of this action is university principal Professor Ahmed Akgündüz. The 55-year-old who has taught in both Turkish and American universities in the field of Islamic law is an influential figure whose views carry considerable weight.
The IUR is intended to be a university that is run by Muslims and for Muslims. Founded in 1997, it currently has around 200 students. The courses, taught in Dutch and Arabic, include Islamic theology, Islamic arts, Muslim spiritual counselling, Arabic, law, the history of Islam and comparative religion.
In addition to housing a library that includes an extensive collection of classical works on Islamic theology and law, the university also has a small studio where calligraphy and ebru, the Turkish art of paper marbling, are taught.
Students who want to study Islamic theology or spiritual counselling in the Netherlands are not entirely dependent on the IUR. The universities of Utrecht, Amsterdam, Den Haag and Leiden all offer the same courses with an official degree and the kind of financial support that every student attending state university in the country receives. And the teachers in these universities have academic qualifications, whereas their counterparts at the Islamic University tend not to.
Recognised degrees, financial support and high academic quality are three factors where the Islamic University is struggling to compete with the state universities. Nevertheless, the IUR believes that it has an advantage. According to Akgündüz, "Islamic theology, art and spiritual counselling are best taught by Muslims." In contrast to the state universities, only the IUR is a genuine Muslim institution where members of various Islamic schools of thought from all over the world come together.
The university's teaching and student body reflect the great diversity and variety of interpretations of Islam. These diverse religious convictions are thrown together at the IUR when, for example, students whose parents are from Morocco, Turkey, Indonesia or Pakistan find themselves discussing questions of religious practice with teachers from, say, Egypt or Syria.
Questions cover areas such as, should Muslim shop assistants in the Netherlands have to sell pork or alcohol? The answer? Yes, according to the majority vote, because it goes with the job. And what about the position Dutch Muslims should adopt with regard to homosexuality? The general consensus is that they need not approve of it but they must accept it.
The IUR can provide Muslims in the Netherlands with an institution where their religious positions on such questions can be developed, believes Nico Landman, a researcher and teacher in Arabic and Islamic studies at the University of Utrecht. "The diversity of the teachers and students makes the IUR a space for internal Islamic discourse," says the academic. It has a "positive, constructive role" to play in multicultural Netherlands.
--
Jan Felix Engelhardt is a freelance writer. This abridged article is distributed by the Common Ground News Service (CGNews) with permission from Qantara.de. The full text can be found at www.qantara.de 


Source : http://www.twocircles.net/2010jun23/developing_islamic_university_rotterdam.html

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Salahuddin Ayubi (r.a.)



By:
Irfan Jalil & Rafakat Khan


When Islam faced a massive attack from Crusader Europe, one man united the Muslims and led them to victory over the enemy. Salahuddin Ayubi rescued Jerusalem from the Crusaders and fought off one of the most menacing enemies that Muslims have ever faced.
Warrior


Jerusalem was important to the Muslims because it contained the Dome of Rock, where Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) ascended to heaven, and the Masjid al Aqsa. Christians also valued Jerusalem as it contained the church of Jesus’ tomb.


In 1095 the Pope urged the Christians to unite and take Jerusalem. Four years later, Christian forces captured Jerusalem and slaughtered Muslims in the process.


By 1176 Salahuddin had become a powerful Muslim ruler. Even though the Crusaders had signed a peace treaty with Salahuddin, Reynald (a Christian prince) attacked a pilgrim caravan on its way to Hajj. He even planned to attack Makkah and Madinah to destroy the grave of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w). Salahuddin made the call for Jihad and united all Muslim states to defend Islam.


The Crusaders gathered their armies and confronted Salahuddin at a place called Hattin. Salahuddin prevented access to water by blockading Lake Tiberas, and left the thirsty Christians without water throughout the night. Then when the sun blazed, Salahuddin started bush fires, which glared into the eyes of the crusaders. Salahuddin’s archers then shot their arrows at the Crusaders. The Crusaders charged at the Muslims and managed to break the lines. However Salahuddin’s armies closed in behind them, leaving them trapped. Salahuddin made the final charge and cut through the Christians - the battle had been won.


Salahuddin took back Jerusalem in 1187 after 88 years of occupation; this would forever be remembered as Salahuddin’s greatest achievement and it made him a hero of Islam. He will be remembered as the Rectifier of Faith because he brought faith back to the Holy Land.
Role model


Salahuddin was a devout Muslim who would never miss his daily prayers. He loved hearing the Quran and would weep at the beauty of Allah (s.w.t)’s words. He was an Islamic scholar who would often journey just to gain more knowledge. He disliked people who brought unnecessary debate and controversy into Islam.


He is best known for his mercy. When the Crusaders had invaded Jerusalem they massacred the inhabitants and destroyed the mosques. The slaughter was so immense that Crusaders waded through blood up to their ankles. But when Salahuddin retook the city he allowed the women and children to leave if they wished. And rather than destroying the churches he allowed Christian pilgrims free passage. He also invited Jews to resettle in Jerusalem.


Salahuddin built schools and abolished taxes that pilgrims had to pay on their way to Makkah. He had great compassion, mercy and generosity. He was known to give jewels away to schools and hospitals. At his death he was the most powerful ruler of Islam there had been since the Prophet (s.a.w), but he had only 1 gold piece and 47 silver pieces to his name, and owned no property.


Many people and leaders of today dwell on worldly goods, they should look at Salahuddin as an example. He placed Islam above everything else.


Salahuddin was very courageous. He rose to the occasion in battle; he never showed any anxiety about the numbers and strength of the enemy. This was due to his strong faith in Allah (s.w.t).


The Muslim youth should look up to him as a role model. His generosity, courage and devotion to faith should inspire us all to be better Muslims.


Al-Afdal his son had the following description placed on his tomb:
‘Almighty Allah, look upon his soul and open to him the gates of Paradise, the last victory for which he hoped.’ 
Source : http://www.therevival.co.uk/salahuddin-ayubi-ra

The Book That Shook the World

Arrangements have been confirmed for the Qur’aan Conference “The Book That Shook the World” on the 20th of June, London, UK. I’ll be there along with Shaikh Dr. Suhaib Hasan, Sh Haitham Haddaad, Sh Abu Usaamah, Ustaz Hussain Yee, Ustaz Murtaza Khan, Br Yusuf Estes, etc. See you all there, in shaa Allaah.




http://blog.bilalphilips.com/2010/04/25/the-book-that-shook-the-world/

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