EID MUBARAK! Joyfully Meeting GOD/ALLAH in the Yusuf Narrative

This is the blogger here Connie with my wildly "novice" attempt once again to reflect on this Surah. Below are some notes and below that some "teachings" from my teacher of the Quran. I was asked by this mentor in the Quran to do my own "fresh" coming to the text before any real study of explanations. This is my 2nd.

Tsunamic Dreams and with them specific "job descriptions for humanity at large" from on High come to visionaries often early in their lives - and help shape their entire life and purpose. Perhaps they would come more often to anyone who was ready to listen to God intently on a more or less full-time basis? Truthfulness about one's own vulnerabilities and need for God's help does not seem to hinder this call. In fact in some cases - including Yusuf's - such transparency before the divine and cries for help may enhance Divine presence - yet not always the way and or with the timing the seeker is pleading.

There is a huge lesson regarding true faith from Joseph's father who due to circumstances was tried severely as well as Joseph - perhaps even more so. I think of all the fathers and family who are feel so helpless and afraid for their missing children in this cataclysmic and especially unjust time in history. Many innocents or those who make youthful mistakes end up with consequences way out of proportion to their "crime". And what father would not be afraid for his missing children? The lesson is that great courage combined with great faith overcomes great fear. Even when there is no way to live without the fear - we can still choose to trust God.

When people of the Abramic faiths over-spiritualize scripture for their children -these children may more easily abandon their faith because they perceive their normal or understandable fears as a lack of God's presence or a lack of their own abilities to perceive and believe in God. Sometimes we teach our children that fearlessness is courage and courage is fearlessness. Yet here is the father of this story ever so human and often passionate with his own emotion for Joseph and yet he did not hide his fears NOR his faith. How often do we do both and then wonder why we can't live up to our surreal and plastic replicas of human?

Sometimes we may imagine that we can or should hide all our passion and emotion from those around us and others. And of course often we must. Nor can we live by the same or depend on these alone. Yet perhaps we are seeing that faith in the One might come through as strongly through our honest expressions as through our stoicism. Not always--yet sometimes -- transparency may be better for our loved ones and our young than to be superficially unflappable in all situations.

Yusuf seems less fearful than his father yet in like manner he recognizes that were it not for God his actions would lead to ruin - it is not so much a matter of his OWN strength at all - yet his faith in the ONE is what keeps him strong. Implicit throughout is his recognition of his limitations given the testing surrounding him. I have imagined him also to be self-forgiving yet this is probably my own projection and not easily apparent.

Nevertheless, how closely the reader is able to FEEL with Yusuf throughout the story and to grow with him - to learn confidence not only in self yet also in God and in the interpretations given to him through God, dreams and many other ways. Thus, even for the reader, trust and confidence in both self AND God grows even through the retelling - like transmission of the unexplainable powers built solidly on faith through experience which in this case seem to be coming from JOSEPH's actual experience with the Divine to this student's weekend study!

"Sophisticated" analysts of literature tend to throw out the real possibility that the Tsunamic (personal or/and world-shaking) dreams as well as the gentler, healing ones could come from an actual God who is all in All. Yet reading the Yusef story over and over throughout a significant period of time - and with prayer - helps shake that kind of doubting.

Here in Joseph's prayer of gratitude is a perfect model for our own similar prayers and a reminder from where such beneficial power and knowledge comes - this is a fitting ending to my personal reflection of the Yusef story in the Quran.

"Lord, You have given me authority and taught me to interpret dreams. Creator of the heavens and the earth, my Guardian of the heavens and the earth, my Guardian in this world and in the world to come! Allow me to die in submission, and admit me among the righteous."

There is a visceral knowing - this is God for Good a deeper recognition that He needs people for specific purposes such as telling of revelations in new, fresh and alive ways keeping with the many innovative "languages" and modes of expression in our time. He needed poets, story-tellers, scribes and musicians then and He still needs such proclaimers now - and perhaps He will forever. All around the globe.

A SCHOLAR-filmmaker Teaches the YUSUF Story with Reason and FAITH

Salaam means Peace

Here is a most eloquent SUMMARY of the ultra-layered UNITY which I'm understanding as a beautiful strong golden running thread of purpose throughout our teacher's work:

'Theme, action, characters, diction, music and embellishment became an indivisible unity in this narrative so that the reader could write on her or his soul the greater Unity of God, which was the key with which Joseph decoded mysteries and foretold destinies of individuals and nations. For that, the readers have to recollect their own energies – the Josephs of their souls must also outwit the scheming stepbrothers of fear, desire and flawed reasoning in order to become one unified whole. To quote from Iqbal: “What is the nation, you who declare ‘No god but God’? With thousands of eyes, to be one in vision! …Do not look slightingly on oneness of vision; this is a true epiphany of the Unity…Are you dead? Become living through oneness of vision; cease to be centre-less, become stable. Create unity of thought and action, that you may possess authority in the world” (‘Beyond the Spheres’ in Javidnama).'

Here is another such passage - too easy to overlook - so again I'm "framing" this here in a slightly different way yet here are the same words Khurram Shafique used:

"The theme of this surah is the gift bestowed upon Joseph by God. Implications of the gift are insight into destiny through interpretation of visions, events and stories. Its corollaries are incorruptible moral character, patience, hope and forgiveness. Its purpose is to bring together a scattered “family,” be it the house of Jacob or the family of God (i.e. the entire human race)."

Now, here is a continuation of more of this teaching - some surprisingly wholistic tools (beyond just analysis) not only for mental clarification with the story of Yusuf - Chapter 12 of the Quran - yet also quite illuminating toward SEEING with the heart sublime TRUTHS (for those ready to receive them.) I have slightly condensed this from a teaching given at the Republic of Rumi by scholar Khurram Ali Shafique Sahib. The capitalization of whole words is mine for emphasis:
================
1. Book (Kitab)
2. Remembrance (Zikr)
3. Guidance (Huda)
4. Cure (Shifa)
5. Arabic (Arabi)

Approaching a text according to according to patterns recognizable by our minds is a human limitation. Hence, on the most obvious level, the Quran is “a BOOM”, and we pay attention not only to what is being said but also how it is being said. The Quranic version of the story we have discussed transforms the historic Joseph into metaphors of an individual soul, a nation as well as the entire human race.

Like Joseph, the humanity was also given a promising vision to be the master of the sun, moon and star. Just like Joseph, it has also been thrown into prison...Therefore, just like Joseph, it will one day be elevated to the throne where indeed the dreams will come true. Each individual is a custodian of this entire progress of humanity: “you too have a Joseph in your soul” is the common message of all Sufi masters while some, like Attar, Jami and Iqbal, have treated the subject at great length.

Consequently, the esteem of the historic person also increases in our hearts. We wonder about the prophet of God who, in a short lifespan, was able to act out a metaphor of the entire human history from Creation to the Day of Judgment as well as mirror the trials and tribulations of each individual soul...the surah consists entirely of historical information...

This reflects the function of the Quran as “REMEMBRANCE.” ...Muslim scholars have spent great efforts to filter out those anecdotes of the story which had crept into traditional commentaries of the Quran from external sources and were incompatible with the stature of Joseph ...perhaps the crowning achievement...in this area is Qasasul Quran, written by Hifzur Rahman Sewharvi sometime around the middle of the twentieth century).

Such efforts...turn the life of this prophet into “GUIDANCE” for our souls. His... unusual truthfulness, chastity, loyalty to friends and family, forgiveness, and wisdom – becomes a role model for believers. The source from which these immense virtues originate is the unity of God, as Joseph himself points out so succinctly: “...Are many lords differing among themselves better or Allah, the One and Almighty?”

Understanding the unity of God through textual integrity, historical accuracy and unity of action leads us to the more miraculous aspects of the Quran. Sufis have equated the Quran with Jesus, since both have been described as “the Word of God” – like Jesus, the Quran also has HEALING (Cure-Shifa) power...

...The word Quran itself means a recital, and hence the Arabic recitation of the Quran has always been emphasized in Muslim cultures: in Javidnama, it is the recitation of the Quran and its sounds which reveal the “Heavenly Archetype” on the spirit of Iqbal at the second stage in the journey (a very creative recitation recommended in an earlier installment of the present summary has been done by Mishary Rashid and is easily available on the Internet through the artist’s website and other sources).

Of course, the other implication of remembering the Quran’s ARABIC CHARACTER is to be able to understand it through linguistic discussions about its words. One interesting point highlighted by my teacher Abbas Husain is that the king refers to his dream as rouya, which has the connotation of a vision while his counselors refer to it as ehlam, which has the connotation of a confused dream which is not worth interpreting. While spiritual psychology regarded all dreams as rouya, modern psychology disregards all as ehlam. A latter approach which was questioned by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was to consider some dreams as inspired from above and therefore rouya while disregarding others as mere reflection of subconscious, and hence disregarding them as ehlam.

Interestingly, the text of Surah Yusuf does not bifurcate between these two types: the same dream is called rouya by the king and ehlam by his counselors. To Joseph, this difference doesn’t seem to matter, for he can interpret all dreams, stories and events to reveal destinies of individuals and nations. This, as he explains to his fellow prisoners, is because he has “abandoned the ways of a people that believe not in Allah and that deny the Hereafter” and has come to see everything with the light of Unity: “O my two companions of the prison! Are many lords differing among themselves better or Allah, the One and Almighty?”

A YUSUF/JOSEPH (in the Quran) Addendum

Joyce K. Jensen painting

Blogger's Note: The items which are in caps and/or parenthesis may be my own emphasis rather than in the usual studies on Republic of Rumi. Find more Yusef/Joseph teachings here and here
'The originality of this Quranic form may not be fully appreciated until we listen to the original text (even without knowing Arabic), and imbibe its resonation not with the critical left brain but the more holistic right brain. It could be a singularly enriching experience to encounter the powerful musical element in the diction of this surah, for instance in a “creative” recitation by someone like Mishary Rashid - highly recommended: you can listen to him in the Quran Explorer here or on his personal website here '

Here and in the posts above are the teacher's commentary intact yet with some occasional "framing" or "reshuffling" until I could more fully see what is being said. Please anyone correct me or show other ways to interpret and organize this material here and above if you see the need! I take responsibility for these arrangements and choice of visuals - willing to make changes...

Our teacher asked students to notice that through the terseness of the text there is specific characterization/VOICE of each person in the narrative. Thus:'Potiphar says, “Behold! It is a snare of you women! Truly, mighty is your snare,” and we get the impression of an honest but busy bureaucrat who is given to generalization for the sake of reaching quick decisions and preserving order at the cost of original thinking.'

The personal quality of presenting the story of Yusuf is continued here:
"Moving across such spectacular locations as stars and moon, deserts and oases, caravans, the Nile Rive Valley, and markets and palaces of ancient Egypt...the power of this surah can be felt apart from “representation and appearances” and its most important embellishment comes from the SOUL of its real protagonist --Moving across such spectacular locations as stars and moon, deserts and oases, caravans, the Nile Rive Valley, and markets and palaces of ancient Egypt, this narrative is singularly lacking in that vivid imagery which characterizes some other passages in the Quran. The reason is obvious: the power of this surah can be felt apart from “representation and appearances” and its most important embellishment comes from the soul of its REAL PROTAGONIST, THE READER. (and Contemplator?)

The Meditator (or The Contemplator) by Ivan Kramskoy, 1876

'As mentioned before, the “framing action” of the surah is dialogue between God and the reader, with which the surah begins. The subsequent story of Joseph, however interesting it may be, is just a kind of mise en abyme – a DESIGN WITHIN DESIGN ... and the “framing action” is resumed as soon as the subplot of Joseph finishes. “Such is one of the stories of what happened unseen, which We reveal by inspiration to you,” says God in Verse 102, and ends His epilogue on a spectacularly high note, nine verses later, declaring the surah to be:

“a detailed exposition of all things, and a guide and a mercy to any such as believe.” A detailed exposition of “all things” in only a hundred and eleven verses may also be (MIRROR) of the inexhaustible depth of the reader’s own soul.'

(Reference to Dr. Aafia) New York, the Untold Story by Aijaz Zaka Syed

New York, the Untold Story
Aijaz Zaka Syed

I am reprinting the following from a few months back in order to highlight what he says at the end about Dr. Aafia Siddiqui: "The horrific ordeal of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, a MIT-trained neuroscientist who disappeared with her three children five years ago from Islamabad to mysteriously resurface in US custody as a terror suspect and al-Qaeda mastermind, is a case in point. Who knows how many Aafia Siddiquis, Sameers and Omars are out there, waiting for justice and freedom? I can hear their helpless, terrifying cries all the time. You can hear them too. All you need is a conscience."

30 July 2009
We all remember where we were when the 9/11 happened. The surreal experience of watching the World Trade Center's twin towers crumble and go down one after another on television in the ancient offices of my old newspaper in India has been etched on my memory forever.

Doubtless, it was an epic tragedy and an act of terror that deserves to be unequivocally condemned in strongest terms possible. And it has been.

More than three thousand innocent lives were snuffed out that September 2001 morning as the whole world watched in helpless horror, not to mention the thousands of families that were directly or indirectly affected. It shook America, the mightiest power on the planet, to its core and changed it forever. I have never believed in all those outlandish conspiracy theories about the 9/11 and a rather absurd belief of some Arabs and Muslims that the September 11 attacks were planned and perpetrated by the Zionists to invite America’s wrath on the Muslim world.

But conspiracy or no conspiracy, the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington did set the United States, and perhaps rest of the Western world, on a collision course with the Arabs and Muslims everywhere. Whoever planned the 9/11, they succeeded spectacularly in their designs.

The terror attacks on New York and Washington killed three thousand people. But the with-us-or-against-us war that the then born-again commander-in-chief ordered in response to the attacks has left more than a million people dead in Afghanistan and Iraq; not to mention the thousands of faceless, nameless innocent civilians who are being killed like flies by US jets and drones in the wild West of Pakistan.

Four thousand American soldiers have died in Iraq alone, little knowing what they fought for. And eight years on, the end of this absurd war with no defined goals is nowhere in sight, even though we have a new commander-in-chief in the White House who talks of “Change We Can.”

And beyond this ubiquitous and all-consuming war that America has been fighting, from Iraq to Afghanistan, there’s a bigger battle that is being waged on human rights, rule of law and all that was once dear and sacred to the American people.

Enough has been said and written about CIA’s special flights and extraordinary renditions and ‘special interrogation methods’ like water boarding – sanctioned and blessed by Dick Cheney, no less – and the Guantanamo Bay. But we will never know how many innocent, faceless civilians have been swallowed up by the nameless, secret gulags around the world—perhaps forever.

Watching New York, the latest Bollywood offering that everyone is talking about these days and not just in the subcontinent, has been a strange experience. While it has been a real treat watching Bollywood heartthrobs John Abraham and Neil Nitin Mukesh and gorgeous Katrina Kaif offer some of the finest performances — perhaps their career best – it is not an easy movie to watch. And it is not possible to ignore the issues and questions that ‘New York’ raises. They will haunt you for a long time to come, while you go about your day-to-day lives and the business of survival in the jungle out there.

‘New York’ opens seven years after the September 11 attacks with three Indian friends, two of them Muslim and male, getting drawn into the vortex of the terror war in the Big Apple. The way Omar (Neil) is framed by the FBI and is persecuted and forced to spy on and turn in his childhood friend Sameer (John) is more like a classic Orwellian tale out of Stalin’s Soviet Union, rather than something from the land of the free. John Abraham, the handsome hunk who has never been known for his histrionic skills, is of course no Shahrukh Khan or Aamir Khan. But he puts in a very convincing, rather moving performance as the chief protagonist and the fall guy, Sameer, bringing to life the trauma and horror that Muslims – or at least some of them – had to go through in New York and elsewhere in America after the 9/11 strikes.

We have all heard of the most persuasive ways of CIA and FBI. But ‘New York’ really lets you experience them. John goes through the hair-raising experience of ‘water boarding’ for real albeit just for a minute, (apparently it becomes unbearable after that). And many of the usual suspects at the Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere have gone through this hell for hundreds of times, and continue to do so.

Well, this is not supposed to be a movie review. But, dear readers, I recommend an early visit to your nearest movie theatre to get an up close experience of what it was to be a Muslim in post 9/11 America (and it still is).

And I wish the Americans themselves, especially their leaders present and past and their smug pundits in the safety of their ivory towers, could get to watch this eye-opening movie and learn from it. I know America has moved on, and so have the Muslims, after the departure of Bush and company. But the mind-boggling mess left behind by the gang is yet to be cleared. And most of those illegal and inhuman policies have survived to this day.

The witch-hunt and victimisation of innocent Muslims as portrayed in the movie, New York, is not the figment of Bollywood’s imagination. It is a frightening reality that is not limited to some unfortunate individuals like Sameer, Omar and Maya who happened to be at the wrong place at a wrong time.

The horrific ordeal of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, a MIT-trained neuroscientist who disappeared with her three children five years ago from Islamabad to mysteriously resurface in US custody as a terror suspect and al-Qaeda mastermind, is a case in point.

Who knows how many Aafia Siddiquis, Sameers and Omars are out there, waiting for justice and freedom? I can hear their helpless, terrifying cries all the time. You can hear them too. All you need is a conscience. I wonder if President Barack Obama, who has changed the way the world looked at America, can hear those helpless men and women.

Given his extraordinary background and the repeated promises he has made to rediscover America’s original ideals and values and its commitment to justice and the rule of law, I believe Obama can hear them too. The question is, does he care enough for his beliefs and convictions to act to protect them? We’ll have to wait and watch.

Aijaz Zaka Syed is Opinion Editor of 
Khaleej Times and can be reached at aijaz@khaleejtimes.com. Views expressed here are his own.

CITY of BANBHORE

HOW do we PROTECT & PREVENT INJURY/DESTRUCTION to our HISTORICAL SITES & SACRED PLACES? Submit your suggestions for more such places to Connie L. Nash newlease7@yahoo.com (use very clear subject heading)

BY ReeBz (see more information and link to her blogsite: SPRING of AUTUMN below)

THE ANCIENT CITY OF BANBHORE

Ancient cities are of major importance for everyone. They describe old civilisations, traditions and cultures. Centuries ago, these cities too had a civilisation and culture of their own, yet now they are mere excavation sites. However, even then a lot can be learned from these places.

There are many ancient and historical places in Pakistan. Each one is of great importance, but today we will talk about a city “Banbhore” situated in Sindh.

Banbhore is more than 2,100 years old. Around the 10th century Banbhore was the capital of a chief Bamboo Raja and was named Bhambor after him. The city was later destroyed in 1250AD. It is an ancient city through which Islam entered the sub-continent when Mohammad Bin Qasim invaded it. The first mosque of South East Asia was also built during this period. After the young general conquered the city, Muslims built more mosques, other residential buildings and fifteen walls around the town.

Banbhore is situated at a distance of about 64 km east of Karachi. It’s an archaeological site and reveals that it was once a well-planned city.

Some scholars identify Banbhore with Debal, the port city where the 17-year-old Arab Conqueror Mohammad Bin Qasim landed in 712 AD. He was a general in the army of Hajjaj Bin Yousuf. Hajjaj Bin Yousuf was the governor of Iraq and was known for his strict administrative qualities. At that time Sindh was ruled by Raja Dahir, a Hindu Raja who was notorious for his cruelty and oppressive rule. Muslims were the most oppressed class in Dahir’s domain and were treated in a cruel and barbaric manner.

However, Hajjaj sent two expeditions under Ubaidullah Nibhal and Budial Bin Tahfa, which ailed when their commanders died in battle against Hindus.

Hajjaj then decided to send another army under the leadership of Mohammad Bin Qasim who was only 17 at that time. He attacked India on 10 Ramazanul Mubarak, 92 Hijri, October 28, 711 AD, and laid a strong siege around Debal, which was the strong fortification of Hindu armies. A catapult (manjaniq) known as Al Aroos was used to dislodge the Hindu armies. Eventually Debal was conquered and Dahir was killed. Mohammed Bin Qasim then occupied the delta towns, marched north up the Indus and within a few weeks reached Multan.

Banbhore was first inhabited by central Asian Sythians and Parthyans; later this site became the last conquest of Alexander the great from where he went back westwards and died on his way to Iran.

Banbhore is also associated with the famous romance of Sassi and Punnu. Sassi belonged to Banbhore, but their graves are in “Othal” in Balochistan.

Museum

Just after entering the museum you can find a model map of Banbhore enclosed in a glass case. There are many guides appointed by the Pakistan government who provide loads of information to the tourists on the age-old civilisation.

The museum at the site also displays pottery, china ware, beads, coins and many other articles used by the people of this ancient land.

When we walk around the museum we learn that Banbhore was a well-planned and advanced city. The people had nice tools and equipments to cope up with the daily challenges. For cooling the water, they had a mud-clay-cooler with a long stem at the bottom of the same material. The stem was used to fix in the sand, which kept the water cold. You can also find toys, needles, buttons, etc. These objects take you back in time and one even forgets to bat an eye while observing.

Mosque

Now, after getting information from the museum, one moves towards the archaeological site. You can hire a guide here too; he will lead you to the site and tell you about different discoveries. You can find the excavations of the first mosque of South East Asia, the bricks which have been used are very modern and remain cool in summer and become hot in winter.

Temple ornaments

Other than the mosques there were other places of worships such as temples too. During excavations certain objects and statues were found that hailed the presence of temples in this age-old civilisation.

Markets

Market places in this area consisted of huge areas of land. Road networking and the drainage system are other aspects of the city that signify the high level of intelligence that the people of the area possessed.

These discoveries shed light not only on the Muslim era but also on pre-Muslim times. These tell the tale about the civilisations of early centuries of the Christian era. Some human skeletons have also been found in streets and houses. The Hindu temple of the pre-Muslim era has also been unearthed along with coins belonging to the Khilafat period. Other stone, glass and ivory objects, pottery, jewellery, arms and certain human skeletons with arrows in their heads show that this town came to a violent end.

Banbhore has given our museums a strong archaeological heritage, one that attracts tourists from all corners and all continents of the world.

END of ReeBz compelling and informative blogpost
Originally published on Dawn -direct link - here and then posted on Sunday, September 13, 2009 This is the article ReeBz wrote few years back which was published in DAWN'S "young world". She said, "I count it as one of my achievements therefore want to share here."

Be sure to see ReeBz blogsite for Sunday's posting REEBZ blogsite: SPRING OF AUTUMN here ReeBz is one of my first Pakistani friends. I met her upon my first "visit" to the historical, sacred, beautiful site called Republic of Rumi . She has enriched my life with her refreshingly outspoke persectives and love of peace. She shares concern for many of the same people and issues I do. Thank You for being patient with me, ReeBz. (The above is is NOT a perfect replica - as far as placement of the images - so please go to ReeBz blogsite where you will see interesting comments as well.)

COURT HEARING for Dr. AAFIA Siddiqui (with crucial references)

Protestor in Pakistan rally

Dr. Aafia's children were maligned and disappeared by US and much earlier possibly Pakistani authorities.



Date:
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Time: 1:00pm - 2:30pm
Location: The Southern District Court of New York
Street: 500 Pearl Street
City/Town: Manhattan, NY

Email: manager@muslimsforjustice.org

Dr. Aafia's court hearing is scheduled for WEDNESDAY, September 23rd at 1:00 PM. Please try to attend and show your support.

United States District Court
500 Pearl St.
Manhattan, NY
@ 1:00 PM

[In Front of Judge Berman -Room 21D ]

4 5 6 & J trains to BROOKLYN BRIDGE-CITY HALL
*OR* M, J, R to CHAMBERS ST

For more information, please visit:
here

And see the blogpost just below announcing and quoting from the new lawyers' team:
here

PLEASE GET OUT THE WORD!

========================================================================
Find this info at cageprisoners dot com search under Aafia Siddiqui by Date

Judge Agrees To Lawyers’ Team For Aafia
A US judge on Wednesday agreed to accept a five-member lawyers’ team to defend Pakistani neuroscientist Aafia Siddiqui despite her vociferous and strong objections saying she wanted to represent herself.
>> Relevance: 100 % | 06/09/2009

============================
Also see the post below for Sept:

"Dr Siddiqui begins her journey as an innocent person under the laws of our country." for statement from new lawyer team

Find the best analysis so far here

Find the best ARCHIVES through summer 2009: here

NOTE this blogsite "About Aafia" which declares a major reason for seeking to support this cause since there has been so much palpable outrage among decent Pakistanis and media over this one case of imprisonoment of this one woman - perhaps more than over any other:

Recap: US was the only foreign country whose representative attended the birth of Pakistan on August 15, 1947. The Case of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui appears as an epitome of entangled issues which seem to threaten this proverbial alliance, and hence also prospects of peace in the region. This blog is about SAVING A BRIDGE.

Another understood reason (which bears much repeating) is also that we support and mercy, aid and truth for victims of systems gone haywire as well as their children and families: here

RAMAZAN/RAMADAN STORIES and HISTORY

BEAUTIFUL STORIES of FASTING, FAMILY, COMMUNITY, FAITH AND MORE



SEE/HEAR the REVEALING RAMADAN PODCAST from Speaking of Faith here There are not enough stories yet...so let's add more related memoirs, your favorite heard or experienced items, poems, first remembrances, stories, epiphanies and moments of light on this blog as well.

If you send them to me newlease7@yahoo.com with RAMZAN, RAMAZAN or RAMADAN in Subject heading or place them in the Comments below post, I will most probably make them most visible and add a few photos, images, art of your choice or mine here on oneheartforpeace.


Here's the first entry (found at Republic of Rumi blogsite Go here and/or go to the intricate and unique teaching website and click on BLOG - UPPER LEFT)

Posted Friday, September 18, 2009 by Khurram Ali Shafique

Ramazan 27
Tonight was the 27th of Ramazan, which is traditionally associated with Shab-i-Qadr – variously translated as the Night of Power, the Night of Predestination, the Grand Night – about which the Quran asks its readers: “And what will explain to you what the Night of Power is?”

Personally, what can explain to me is the coincidence that Rumi wrote a Masnavi as “the Quran in Persian”, his disciple Iqbal claimed about his own poetry that it contained nothing but the essence of the Quran; out of this literature a sovereign state was conceived but the British Viceroy didn’t agree with Muslims about when it should be born and for his very own reasons he thrust upon them a moment several months ahead of their preference, and, that very moment turned out be Ramazan 27.

For many spiritually inclined Pakistanis, one of the most special things about their country is that its date of birth – the midnight of August 14 and 15, 1947 – coincided with Shab-i-Qadr:

1. Indeed We revealed this on the Night of Power:
2. And what will explain to you what the Night of Power is?
3. The Night of Power is better than a thousand months.
4. Therein come down the angels and the Spirit by their Lord's
on every errand:
5. Peace it is till the rising of the dawn.