/ Jan 02, 2019 07:31 PM Master the Basics of Coding in Under Two Hours in Interactive Steps and Visual Examples Methods for using this guide: View the online version on this page (scroll down) Download a free PDF version Download a free Mobi version (for e-readers and ebook-reading apps, zipped) Buy the Kindle version on Amazon Buy the paperback version […]
/ Apr 09, 2019 06:13 PM This page contains the full text of Learning Quranic Arabic for Complete Beginners by Ikram Hawramani. You can get this book on Amazon.com as a paperback and Kindle ebook. Learning Quranic Arabic for Complete Beginners ✽ A Step by Step Self-Teaching Guide to the Arabic Language of the Quran Ikram Hawramani 2019StewardsPublishing STEWARDS PUBLISHING Copyright © 2019 Ikram Hawramani First […]
/ Nov 17, 2018 03:28 PM / No Comments on The Muslim Plan for Western Civilization: There is No Plan / 8091 viewsDo Muslims hope to establish a World Caliphate? It is undeniable that some Muslims, including religious scholars, look forward to one day there existing a new Islamic empire that represents “true” Islam and that brings back the glory of the olden days. As is usual with fantasy-land Islam, the thinking is top-down, the caliphate has […]
/ Sep 27, 2017 06:38 PM Selected and Translated by Ikram Hawramani Copyright © 2017 Ikram Hawramani A Brief Primer on Ibn al-Jawzi Abū l-Faraj ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Ibn al-Jawzī (1116 – 1201 CE) was a major historian, hadith scholar, jurist and popular preacher in medieval Baghdad. He is said to have written over a hundred works (some mention as many as […]
/ Nov 11, 2019 09:50 PM / No Comments on The Islamic stance on writing novels / 1064 views[1] Salam, don’t know if this is the best place to ask, but I feel you give perceptive answers that make a lot of sense, & you have answered questions relating to writing poetry etc aswell as reviewed a contemporary romantic novel Ayesha At Last on your blog. Personally I hope to one day write […]
/ Aug 27, 2019 06:01 PM / No Comments on My writing process / 252 viewsWhat’s your writing process? How do you pick your books to discuss and how long does it take when you write essays or long answers? I read books according to what interests me. My three main interests are Islamic studies, Western thought (philosophy and literature) and sociology / life sciences (everything to do with the […]
/ Apr 09, 2018 06:50 PM / 14 Comments on A new approach to the Quran’s “Wife-Beating Verse” (al-Nisa 4:34) / 17621 viewsIn this essay, I present a plausible framework in which traditional scholarly interpretations of 4:34 can be considered correct without this becoming support for violence against women. I argue that the error has not been in understanding 4:34 but in scholarly efforts to justify it. There is a new line of justification that has so […]
/ Aug 08, 2017 07:21 PM / 16 Comments on Reconciling Islam and Darwinian Evolution: Al-Ghazali’s Matrix and the Divine Template / 23884 viewsIntroduction (Download this essay as a PDF) This essay demonstrates the relationship between Islam and science/rationality through my effort to reconcile Darwinian evolution with the Quran. I am as much a “Darwinian” as any evolutionary biologist and as much a believer in the literal meaning of the Quran as any conservative Muslim. By showing how […]
/ Jan 27, 2019 08:50 PM / No Comments on Do eye drops break the fast? / 1274 viewsHello, does using eye drops break the fasting? There are different opinions on whether eye drops break the fast or not. The Mālikī and Ḥanbalī opinion is that it breaks the fast. The major Ḥanafī scholars believe it does not break the fast. According to Dr. Ali Gomaa (Egypt’s Grand Mufti from 2003 to 2013) says […]
/ Feb 12, 2019 06:17 PM / No Comments on The ruling on breaking a fast that you are making up for Ramadan / 531 viewsIs it haram to break a fast that you’re making up for Ramadan? While breaking optional fasts is permitted without issue, according to multiple fatwas it is not permitted to a break a fast that one is performing in place of an obligatory fast. If a person breaks such a fast without having an excuse, […]
/ Mar 08, 2019 10:36 PM / No Comments on The rule on writing sexually explicit materials in Islam / 1265 viewsAssalamu Alaikum brother, I just wanted to ask if u have any advice how writers or artists can avoid ‘fahisha’ in their work. When I write fiction I avoid writing about Islam bc I don’t want to mix that which is made up with the truth. At the same time I don’t want to represent […]
/ Mar 13, 2019 10:11 AM / No Comments on Best friends and soulmates / 1924 viewsBrother, is there such thing as a best friend? I’m the type of person who thinks that I only allow myself one best friend, but after a few failed friendships, I’m starting to believe such thing never actually exist. Was it because my previous failed friendships? And also, is it true that soulmate can be […]
/ Sep 14, 2017 12:20 AM / 1 Comment on What to do if all the negative coverage of Islam and online Islam-bashing affects you / 701 viewsI’m from India and I see a lot of negativity towards Islam and it saddens me very much. Filthy comments made about Islam and people who practice Islam. I usually do not indulge in such arguments/comments because there is no point but it effects me. Please help Jazakallah khair That is a promise of the […]
/ Mar 13, 2019 08:53 PM / 6 Comments on Reconciling Free Will and Predestination in Islam with al-Māturīdī and Ibn Taymiyya / 9443 viewsRecently I have been reading many works on Islamic theology (kalām) in order to find answers to certain questions and paradoxes inherent within the Islamic theological worldview. Since I was already familiar with Ashʿarite theology (Islam’s dominant theological school), I decided to focus on al-Māturīdī (d. 944 CE), who represents Islam’s alternative yet orthodox theological […]
/ Oct 01, 2017 09:00 PM Selected and Translated by Ikram Hawramani Copyright © 2017 Ikram Hawramani Hawramani.com All Rights Reserved A Brief Primer on Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah Ibn al-Qayyim[1] was born in Damascus on January 28th of the year 1292 CE, equivalent to the seventh of Ṣafar of the year 691 AH. His full name is Abū ʿAbd-Allah Shams al-Dīn […]
/ May 24, 2019 04:51 AM / No Comments on What is the best time to perform witr? / 747 viewsAssalamu alaykum Please how many raka’ats is the Witr prayer and when is it best observed.. is it before going to bed or shortly before dawn? Jazakallahu khayran Alaikumassalam wa rahmatullah, Witr should be performed as the last prayer of the night before dawn. The best time to perform it is related to the best […]
/ Jul 15, 2018 06:17 PM / No Comments on Kafara for wrongful abortion and manslaughter for one who cannot fast 60 days / 1277 viewsIf someone has had an abortion and they can’t fast for 60 days, will Allah forgive them if they constantly ask for forgiveness? There are two opinions on that. According to the Palestinian scholar Dr. Hisam al-Din Afana if a person cannot fast in that scenario, there is nothing else they have to do, they […]
/ Jul 14, 2018 05:43 PM / 1 Comment on Muslims may write fantasy and romance novels (except for erotic ones) / 9504 viewsSalam, I am an English literature major and I really want to write fictional novels one day. With any novels you would hope to speak about an important message, with fiction these ideas are offered like a reflection of reality and in a way that it will connect to a reader. Is it wrong to […]
/ Aug 10, 2018 03:00 PM / No Comments on Is it permissible to write down prayer words when learning how to pray (salah)? / 1415 viewshey, I’m struggling with myself. I want to start praying , but i don’t know how to pronounce the things. And the other thing is if I can’t remember the sayings can I write it down and read it or is it not focusing on Allah and the praying then and when do I have […]
/ Mar 13, 2019 07:47 PM / 1 Comment on A Study of the Hadiths on Qadar (Predestination): Judging Between Fatalism and Free Will / 5330 viewsThis is a supplement to my essay Reconciling Free Will and Predestination in Islam with al-Māturīdī and Ibn Taymiyya Qadar (divine predestination) is one of the most controversial issues in Islam. Muslim thinkers are generally divided into two groups on this issue. There are the rationalists and semi-rationalists like the Matūrīdīs, Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya and most mainstream intellectuals […]
/ May 18, 2019 01:30 PM / No Comments on What is an essay? / 3716 viewsSalaam alaikum. Would you kindly explain what is an essay and how do you make it? I have read your essays and I have no idea how it works. It looks just like another form of writing to me. Thank you and your respond is very much appreciated. Alaikumassalam wa rahmatullah, An essay is just […]
/ Jun 30, 2017 06:42 PM / 1 Comment on What to do when your spouse is less religious than you / 3799 viewsA question I received recently: I am in my early twenties and have married a woman who comes from a Muslim family. After marrying her, I have found that religion is not very important to her. I had wished to marry a woman who was my equal in faith, so that we could create a […]
/ Feb 26, 2018 12:09 AM / No Comments on Can one read or listen to Quran online without wudu? / 7037 viewsDo we have to get ba-wudu even if we reciting or listening Quran online? There seems to be general agreement that qira’ah (reading/listening to/reciting aloud the Quran) can be done without wudu. The only thing that most agree should not be done without wudu is touching a book of Quran (i.e. a mushaf) (however, the highly respected […]
/ May 10, 2019 03:17 PM / No Comments on Does throwing up phlegm break the fast? / 3174 viewsSalam brother, (trigger warning for gagging/throwing up) I was wondering; I threw up some phlegm today & at one point i forced myself to do it so that I could feel better (I have a bad cough & it’s been in my system for a bit) does this break my fast? I know vomiting intentionally […]
/ Jun 11, 2019 02:45 PM / No Comments on Do blood tests or donating blood nullify the fast? / 491 viewsI need to have a blood test will this invalid my fast that I’m making up for Ramadan? The removal of blood from the bloodstream, whether for tests or for donation, does not affect the fast, so you can do that without issue. References: Fatwa from the Qatari Fatwa Authority (Arabic PDF)
/ Feb 16, 2019 02:30 PM / No Comments on Does bleeding from the gum nullify wudu or fast? / 5283 viewsSalam brother, does swallowing blood break fast/wudu? what if it’s only a small amount? I have a tooth that constantly bleeds and it’s frustrating worrying about it all the time. According to a fatwa by the Qatari Fatwa Authority bleeding from the gum does not nullify wudu, but a person should avoid swallowing it as […]
/ May 13, 2019 05:04 PM / 1 Comment on Does smoking and vaping break one’s fast? / 4778 viewsDoes smoking and/or vaping break one’s fast? Yes, they both break the fast. Smoking and vaping have the same rule since the issue is with the smoke, which causes chemicals to be transmitted into your bloodstream. Source: Fatwa from the Egyptian Fatwa Authority (Arabic PDF)
/ Jun 04, 2019 01:43 PM / 2 Comments on How to make up a Ramadan fast broken due to masturbation / 9081 viewsduring ramadan i have masturbated in the middle of the day i really regret doing that and i know it’s a big sin but i want to know should i fast 120 days or just one day and what else should i do ? i hope you can help me It is sufficient to make […]
/ May 13, 2019 05:58 PM / No Comments on What are the things that invalidate the fast? / 632 viewsSalaam alaykum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuhu. Is it okay to watch movies in Ramadan? What all things are forbidden in the month of Ramadan? The things that invalid the fast are the following: Eating and drinking Smoking Sexual intimacy and masturbation to the point of ejaculation Intentionally causing oneself to vomit The start of menstruation […]
/ Sep 11, 2019 05:41 PM / No Comments on Dealing with life’s stress and fast pace as a Muslim / 313 viewsAssalamualaykum. How to slow down in this fast pace life? I mean, I rush with almost everything. I lost my consciousness and awareness about myself, what I’m doing, my surroundings, even with my prayer and my relation to Allah. I’ve realized time just passed by without barokah in it. I’m afraid I’ll die with such […]
/ Dec 07, 2019 03:51 PM / No Comments on Can one pray in bed or through writing? / 604 viewsAssalamualaikum, thank you for this wonderful platform that allows us muslim to ask various kinds of questions. So my question is, are we allowed to pray from our bed while we get ready for bed? Or is it allowed to pray by writing down our prayers as if we are writing a letter to Allah? […]
/ Oct 10, 2017 10:00 PM / 1 Comment on God has not abandoned you: Regaining your sense of purpose when life feels spiritually empty, lonely and meaningless / 17378 viewsI would appreciate some advice. I pray all my prayers on time and I read Quran daily, along with other forms of worship, but I feel so numb & empty. I feel like I have no purpose in this life, like if I died it won’t even matter. I don’t affect this Ummah in any […]
/ Jan 11, 2019 11:12 PM / 1 Comment on Ibn Taymiyya and His Times / 5203 viewsIbn Taymiyya and His Times is a collection of high-quality scholarly essays on Ibn Taymiyya (d. 1328 CE) edited by Yossef Rapoport and Shahab Ahmed. It is highly worth reading for anyone interested in this important and controversial character of Islamic history. Maybe I should mention that I do not consider myself a follower of Ibn Taymiyya. […]
/ Nov 11, 2018 04:59 PM / No Comments on What is the best way to avoid habitual sins? / 1961 viewsAssalamu’alaykum, I wanna ask how to find myself and get back on the right path back? Im lost. Like so lost. Ive been feeling so tired with life and everything but i still keep on sinning. Like why is it so hard for me to understand that this life is temporary. Im sorry im emotional. […]
/ Nov 09, 2019 07:47 PM / No Comments on What are the best duas? / 908 viewsWhat are some of the best duas? What are some things to ask god for? Below are my favorite duas which I try to make after every prayer: To forgive your sins. Allahumma innaka affuwwun tuhibbul afwa faafu anni (O God, you are the Most Forgiving, and You love forgiveness, so forgive me.) To guide you and […]
/ Jun 24, 2019 03:14 PM / No Comments on Can a woman take off the hijab for an online suitor? / 2204 viewsSalam alaikum. Brother, what are your thoughts on a man who found a woman in an online dating site, whom wants to get to know of her, felt good connection after few conversations because they have lots in common, but asks her to take off her hijab before any agreements for marriage? He didn’t force […]
/ Dec 01, 2018 02:08 AM / No Comments on HTML, CSS & JavaScript for Complete Beginners Code Examples / 1831 viewsChapter 12 “Program” starting code: Chapter 12 four rectangles example. Remove the lines that say “remove this line” otherwise the code will not work. Chapter 13 cookie-related code: Chapter 24 Reading Journal example (live demo)
/ Nov 18, 2018 02:48 PM / No Comments on JavaScript for Complete Beginners Code Examples / 1782 viewsvar text = ‘And this is Dorlcote Mill. I must ‘ + ‘stand a minute or two here on the bridge ‘ + ‘and look at it, though the clouds are ‘ + ‘threatening, and it is far on in the afternoon. ‘ + ‘Even in this leafless time of departing February ‘ + ‘it […]
/ Aug 09, 2018 05:56 PM / 2 Comments on What the Prophets Teach Us About the Proper Etiquette of Dua (Supplication) / 1664 viewsIn answer to questions regarding the nature and ideal manner of supplication in Islam The true servant of God is the one who accepts whatever the Creator decrees. If he asks of Him and He answers, he considers that a privilege granted by Him, and if he is denied, he considers that an act of […]
/ Aug 05, 2018 05:42 PM / 4 Comments on Islam and Depression: A Survival Guide / 9674 viewsPlease note that this article is not meant as a replacement for medical help, but as a supplement to it. What does Islam have to offer someone who has been suffering depression for years and sees no end in sight to their suffering? Depression is not sadness and cannot be cured by thinking positively as […]
/ Dec 07, 2019 04:03 PM / No Comments on Is the best salah the longest? / 794 viewsAssalamualaikum. I want to ask that is it true that the best salah is when you stand the longest… Is it true? And why is that? Alaikumassalam wa rahmatullah, The reward for a good deed depends on the effort and sacrifice we put into it. So standing longer in prayer is better because we spend […]
/ Oct 06, 2018 05:58 PM / No Comments on Programming for Complete Beginners Code Examples / 416 viewsvar text = ‘And this is Dorlcote Mill. I must ‘ + ‘stand a minute or two here on the bridge ‘ + ‘and look at it, though the clouds are ‘ + ‘threatening, and it is far on in the afternoon. ‘ + ‘Even in this leafless time of departing February ‘ + ‘it […]
/ Feb 20, 2019 02:06 PM / 1 Comment on Believing Women in Islam (2019) by Asma Barlas and David Raeburn Finn / 2257 viewsBelieving Women in Islam: A Brief Introduction by Asma Barlas and David Raeburn Finn is a short book that attempts to present the main ideas of Barlas’s longer work “Believing Women” in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpretations of the Quran. First, I should mention that I believe that any self-respecting and civilized man should demand that his female mate […]
/ Mar 04, 2017 03:44 PM / 11 Comments on Why God Allows Evil to Exist, and Why Bad Things Happen to Good People / 26695 viewsIntroduction There is a surprising amount of confusion among the religious, even among clerics and scholars, when it comes to understanding why evil exists and why God stands aside when so much suffering happens throughout the world. Most of us express wonder when we see some horrible catastrophe happen, or when we see evil individuals, […]
/ Jul 04, 2018 08:16 PM / 1 Comment on Is Islam really pluralistic? An Islamic defense of pluralism / 6014 viewsIf Islamic teachings can be used to defend pluralism, that tells us something very important about the future of Islam. My views are not unique; they are similar to those of the great twentieth century Egyptian scholar Muḥammad ʿAbdallāh Drāz (1894 – 1958 CE), who defended a similar vision in many of his articles and […]
/ Dec 26, 2017 10:24 PM / No Comments on What is the best dua for marrying well? / 586 viewsWhat kind of dua can I make to marry someone who is extraordinary person? Speak to God the way you speak to someone you love and ask Him what you want. You do not need special words. You do not even need words.
/ Feb 25, 2017 04:19 PM / 1 Comment on Measuring Economic and Military Potentials of World Nations with the Human Genetic-Cultural Quality Index (HQI) / 1621 viewsIntroduction What is the biggest predictor of a country’s scientific output, industrial capacity and military prowess? It is not geographic size. For instance, Kazakhstan and Mongolia are huge compared to Israel and Switzerland, yet Israel and Switzerland far outdistance them in all measures of intellectual, technological and military attainment. It is not population. India’s 1.28 […]
/ Sep 21, 2019 04:10 PM / 3 Comments on Ayesha, At Last by Uzma Jalaluddin (Book Review) / 7912 viewsAyesha, At Last is a 2018 novel by Uzma Jalaluddin, a Canadian Muslim. It is her first novel. The publisher stresses that this is a Muslim version of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. This comparison is very unfair to Austen’s great masterpiece and sets readers up for disappointment. The story is a melodramatic and unrealistic […]
/ Sep 11, 2017 06:59 PM / 2 Comments on The Islamic View of Sex Education and Adolescent Exposure to Sexual Scenes in Novels and Films / 3190 viewsMy child loves to read books. Some of the books she wants to read mention sex. She is 13 years old and I don’t know when to allow her to read those books or even when to tell her about sex. I need help with this. Thank you! When a child reaches puberty (and I […]
/ Jan 16, 2017 03:18 AM / 6 Comments on Inconsistencies in the Harry Potter Books / 6757 views Introduction This page lists all of the errors and inconsistencies I’ve found throughout my many readings of the entire series (I have Stephen Fry’s reading of the books on my phone as an audiobook, to which I sometimes listen when I’m resting or trying to fall asleep). Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone What Object […]
/ Nov 09, 2017 03:44 PM / No Comments on A Biography of Ahmad Moftizadeh / 2721 viewsKak Ahmadi Muftizada: Darwazayak bo Xabateki Nanasraw (کاک ئەحمەدی موفتیزادە: دەروازەیەک بۆ خەباتێکی نەناسراو, Ahmad Moftizadeh: A Gateway to an Unknown Struggle) is a 394-page Kurdish biography of the great Iranian Kurdish leader Ahmad Moftizadeh written by Sarwat Abdullah, apparently published in 2010. I have been reading all available materials on Ahmad Moftizadeh, since he is […]
/ Nov 05, 2018 05:25 PM / 3 Comments on The two salvations: How erotic beauty is a false category of beauty / 7457 viewsIn his 2009 book Beauty, the wonderful British philosopher Roger Scruton says many insightful things about beauty. His book inspired me to create my own Islamic theory of aesthetics in which I assert that a beautiful thing is nothing other than that which brings us face-to-face with God. The reason that the most beautiful and picturesque […]
/ May 26, 2019 05:15 AM / 1 Comment on Shah Waliullah on the Art of Being Knowledgeable / 2547 viewsThe religion of Islam, perhaps more than any other religion, is characterized by its emphasis on scholarship (daneshmandī دانش مندی in Farsi/Urdu), on the acquiring of knowledge (ʿilm) and wisdom (ḥikma), and on the sharing of knowledge through education (Rosenthal, 2007). The responsibility of the education (taʿlīm) of mankind is taken up by Allah [swt] […]
/ Mar 22, 2018 09:32 PM / 1 Comment on The Road to Maturity: On Dealing with Life’s Unsolvable Problems / 7225 viewsEvery person’s life seems to contain problems that have no solution. Such problems can last for years, even decades. Among such problems are: Poverty: A person’s life may be denied many joys and contain many indignities brought about by poverty. Having a disabled child: An otherwise happy and wealthy couple may be force to worry […]
/ Feb 01, 2018 06:32 PM / No Comments on Learning to love God again / 1558 viewsI want to know how to heal from the religious abuse I’ve been through in my life. I can’t find any resources online for Muslims. Most people I have read had issue with religious abuse have left. I don’t know how to heal that part. Maybe if I seek a professional they might tell me […]
/ Feb 12, 2019 06:08 PM / No Comments on The Closing of the Muslim Mind and the Decline of Islamic Civilization / 1976 viewsA response to Robert R. Reilly’s book The Closing of the Muslim Mind: How Intellectual Suicide Created the Modern Islamist Crisis. Last I year I published then took down an early version of this essay. This is the updated version (also published as chapter 3 of my book An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Understanding Islam […]
/ Sep 28, 2017 08:19 PM / No Comments on Understanding Islam’s Sophisticated Approach to Slavery: Why Muslims Practiced Slavery in the Past, and Why They Reject it Today / 2501 viewsBelow are my preliminary thoughts on why Islam’s tolerance for slavery is not necessary unethical. It may sound like nothing but empty apologetics to defend Islam’s toleration of slavery and say that Islam’s goal was to abolish it, when Islam’s Prophet ﷺ and his companions all practiced it widely. And generally this is what much of […]
/ Feb 18, 2019 03:11 PM / No Comments on The History of Salafism: The Making of Salafism by Henri Lauzière / 2202 viewsHenri Lauzière’s 2016 book The Making of Salafism is about how Salafism as we know it today was invented in the 20th century. I discovered Lauzière’s work through reading his 2010 article “The Construction of Salafiyya: Reconsidering Salafism from the Perspective of Conceptual History,” in the International Journal of Middle East Studies. That article overturned many of my […]
/ Oct 21, 2017 06:17 PM / 1 Comment on Conflicts of Fitness: Islam, America, and Evolutionary Psychology / 2571 viewsConflicts of Fitness: Islam, America, and Evolutionary Psychology by A.S. Amin is a highly original examination of the dynamics of gender and sexuality within Western societies on the one hand, and within Islamic societies on the other. As someone who has been working on reconciling Islam and evolutionary theory and on developing a post-feminist theory […]
/ Sep 11, 2019 05:58 PM / No Comments on Do Muslims believe in establishing a caliphate? / 512 viewsSalaam. Many ulema in Indonesia agreed that the Caliphate is one of Muslim obligation to be established, while I’ve read your essay that you do not agree on the re-establishment of the Caliphate. Your essay mentions only for the Western, that it do not need a Caliphate. Does your thoughts and opinion also applied to […]
/ Dec 05, 2019 08:22 PM / 1 Comment on Dealing with a Muslim father and husband who watches pornography / 2476 viewsAssalamualaykum. May Allah bless you and your family for your efforts to help this ummah, aameeen. I want to ask your advice about my dad who secretly watched porn videos on his phone. Me and the whole family, especially my mom, were devastated. We thought he already made a توبة, but this morning my mom […]
/ Nov 14, 2019 03:58 PM / 2 Comments on Why Your Teenager Hates You / 14593 viewsAs a parent, you spend years tiring yourself to raise a child, only to watch them become a hostile teenager who thinks of you as something of an enemy who wants to control their lives. No matter how much you tell them that you have their best interests at heart and that you want them […]
/ Apr 09, 2019 10:13 PM / No Comments on She caught her divorced sister cheating with a married man / 8520 viewsAsalam Alaikum. My sister is a divorced. I have sadly found out my sister has a haram relationship with a married man. The mans wife is both my sisters and I very good friend so I could not believe my sister would do this to her. I’m so sad. What should I do? Tell my […]
/ Oct 25, 2017 04:44 PM / 2 Comments on Islam, the Good Parts: A Basic Income System that Encourages Employment, Productive Investment and Automation / 5498 viewsWithin the next 50 years, most of the jobs that today employ people will not exist, because robots and computers will be able to do them better and cheaper. Over the past 50 years there has been much talk of artificial intelligence, and much of it was empty and little came out of it. The true […]
/ Nov 07, 2018 04:03 PM / 2 Comments on Why Digital Piracy is Ethical and Necessary / 13284 viewsDisclaimer: This is an academic essay on the ethics of digital piracy. It is not a call for breaking the law by pirating. Some jurisdictions punish piracy severely, therefore the risk is entirely your own if you choose to break the law by pirating content. For my proposal for a digital library that makes piracy […]
/ Nov 04, 2018 06:48 PM / 5 Comments on A Hadith Scholar Presents New Evidence that Aisha was Near 18 the Day of Her Marriage to the Prophet Muhammad / 31415 viewsThe age of Aisha bint Abu Bakr, may God be pleased with her and her father, at the time of her marriage to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH is one of the thorny issues in modern Islam, used as one of the main talking points against Islam by Islam’s detractors. How could God’s Prophet, a widower […]
/ Jan 07, 2019 02:14 PM / No Comments on Islam’s Quantum Question: Reconciling Muslim Tradition and Modern Science / 1715 viewsNidhal Guessoum’s Islam’s Quantum Question (originally published in French in 2009, published in English in 2011) is well worth reading, mainly for its detailed refutation of various pseudo-scientific defenses of Islam and the Quran that have been offered by others. His detailed critique of Iʿjāz literature and its supporters (such as Zaghloul El-Naggar), who purport to show scientific […]
/ Oct 28, 2019 02:49 PM / No Comments on Islam and academic plagiarism / 676 viewsAo, I feel very confused and sinful, for my class I used a website to write an essay, but a previous student had done the same thing the year before and the teacher thought I had used the students essay. I admitted to using the website, but I turned the essay on it into a […]
/ Dec 06, 2018 02:54 PM / No Comments on The Universal Digital Library: A Platform that Makes Digital Piracy Unnecessary, Funds Creators, and Makes eBooks, Games and Software Affordable / 2661 viewsIn my previous essay Why Digital Piracy is Ethical and Necessary I discussed why there are no proper digital libraries: publishers pretend that digital goods cannot be sold. They demand continuous rents for digital products they give to libraries, making things like ebooks costlier (and for more difficult to lend due to various licensing clauses) than printed […]
/ Mar 27, 2019 05:09 PM / 14 Comments on Probablistic Hadith Verification: Combining the Science of Hadith with Legal Theory / 14022 viewsA Quick Preview Let us say we are faced with two hypothetical authentic (i.e. ṣaḥīḥ) hadiths from a respected collection such as Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, with the following chain diagrams, and we are trying to decide which hadith is stronger and better attested. The first hadith below has four transmitters (the four on the right), all […]
/ Dec 26, 2017 10:33 PM / No Comments on Should Islam and politics mix or not? / 575 viewsI am a Muslim but my personal opinion is that politics and Islam shouldn’t mix. The living examples of this are Muslim countries. I am not saying by any means that democracy is better, God knows how many people have died in the name of secular democracy. Although I know that the original intention and […]
/ Apr 21, 2019 02:34 PM / No Comments on Islamic Law and Jurisprudence: Studies in Honor of Farhat J. Ziadeh / 775 viewsIslamic Law and Jurisprudence: Studies in Honor of Farhat J. Ziadeh (published 1990) is a collection of papers written in honor of the Palestinian-American professor Farhat Jacob Ziadeh (1917-2016), founder and first chairman of the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilization at the University of Washington. I bought this book after seeing it cited […]
/ Apr 20, 2019 07:01 PM / No Comments on A Quranic Phenomenology of Atheism / 1815 viewsIt is common in religious thought to dismiss atheists as obstinate wrongdoers who reject religion out of a combination of irrationality, egotism and their preference for their base desires. But if we appreciate the great honor and dignity that God bestowed on all of humanity (the angels bowed down to us), we should perhaps be […]
/ Jul 21, 2018 08:09 PM / No Comments on There are billions of non-Muslims, so how can Islam be the one true path? / 1355 viewsIt’s hard for me to imagine that there are populations and populations who barely have clue what Islam is and yet it is the one true path. What will happen then to these people? God’s purpose in building this universe was to make it possible for humans to exist who love Him and believe in […]
/ Nov 19, 2018 07:19 PM / No Comments on Dealing with missing someone after a breakup / 3881 viewsAssalamualaikum,what do we do when we miss someone so dearly,It just literally kills us on the inside,I wanted him to make me halal but he rejected me in a kind way Alaikumassalam wa rahmatullah, Tragic life events such as breaking up with someone we love will invariably cause us to suffer. There is no way […]
/ Jun 28, 2018 09:31 PM / 1 Comment on Parents will not let him marry his chosen / 724 viewsPlease can you advice me. There is a guy who wants to wants to marry me and my parents are OK with it but his parents are forcing him to marry his cousin instead. He already tried to talk to his parents many times, to convince to at least meet my family (his parents don’t […]
/ Jan 13, 2019 03:13 PM / No Comments on Her abusive parents make her feel depressed / 1806 viewsAssalamu aleikum, for several years i have been feeling like a burden and a problem to my parents. they never support or show love and admiration for anything me or my sisters do, they’re always scared that we’re going to ruin their reputations and have absolutely zero respect for us, the degrading things they’ve told […]
/ Mar 17, 2018 04:11 PM / No Comments on On which scholar’s opinions to follow and scholarly consensus (ijmāʿ) / 1880 viewsI don’t mean to offend you in any way but I just want to know (because I find other Islamic sources different from your answers sometimes). But I’m wondering when people ask you a certain thing on your blog , do you go after the scholars who give the fatwas/explanations that sounds most logic or […]
/ Jan 18, 2019 06:34 PM / No Comments on How to begin practicing Islam / 389 viewsHello. I write to you because I don’t know what else to do. I come from a Christian family, in a very much Christian country where Islam is never regarded, not even discussed or insulted. Just ignored. Yes, people know about it but when I speak about my love for the Quran or my wishes […]
/ Dec 02, 2020 03:16 PM / 3 Comments on She promised Allah not to talk to him then broke her promise / 4631 viewsAsalam Walikum, I hope you are doing well. I really really need help 🙁 so i went through a heartbreak with someone i liked and wanted to marry. I made a promise to Allah about it, that ill stop talking to him until he is brought for marriage. He did come back after so many […]
/ Jul 25, 2018 04:37 PM / No Comments on How lenders contribute to decreasing native populations in industrialized nations: Housing prices, wages, interest and low fertility rates / 1626 viewsThe following chart from a BBC article (archived link) shows how home prices in the UK increased much faster than wages between 1975 and 2005. If you ask “Why are wages not increasing fast as home prices?” you are asking the wrong question. What we are seeing above is a literal land grab enabled by […]
/ Jan 24, 2019 04:03 PM / 2 Comments on Can one take medications when fasting? / 1197 viewshello, i know ramadan is months away but i wanted to ask this before i forget, can we take medication while fasting? without water of course, because i get really bad migraines and i need pills to calm them Taking medications by mouth is not permitted when fasting. You could try taking the medication before […]
/ Jul 17, 2018 05:23 PM / No Comments on SSDs became 3.4 times faster in eight years, 15.5 GB/s read speeds by 2030 / 454 viewsIn November 2010, AnandTech reported about an SSD that was achieving 800 MB/second sequential read speeds: In July 2018, AnandTech reports that 2700 MB/second SSD drives are available: In this period of about 10 years, PCIe SSD speeds increased by a factor of 3.4, at least when it comes to sequential read speeds, which is an […]
/ Jun 30, 2019 03:07 PM / No Comments on Making up fasts after repentance, missed due to lack of knowledge / 787 viewsAO, what is the verdict for covering missed fasts? I grew up a Muslim but was never taught to pray & when I was young my parents discouraged me to fast bc they thought I couldn’t handle it. Also they use to think swallowing saliva broke the fast so it felt impossible for me. For […]
/ Jun 09, 2019 04:24 PM / 6 Comments on Why People Dislike Middleman Minorities: A Fix for Thomas Sowell’s Blind Spot / 5414 viewsOn most days of Ramadan, fasting makes it impossible for me to do my usual programming and writing work. For this reason I spent most of the daytime hours of this Ramadan reading books, finishing over 20 books (mainly audiobooks). For years I have been aware of Thomas Sowell as perhaps the greatest living African […]
/ Jun 23, 2019 07:41 PM / 5 Comments on The Uniqueness of Western Civilization by Ricardo Duchesne / 6550 viewsThere are times when you read a book that completely change your understanding of the world, answering questions you have had for most of your life, and even better, answering questions you did not know you had. This is such a book. Duchesne unites economic analysis, anthropology, history and philosophy in order to make a […]
/ Jun 28, 2019 11:46 PM / 1 Comment on Hijabis, Niqabis, and Religious Liberties in the Secular State / 1225 viewsWhen I was fourteen, my new geometry teacher paused while taking attendance on the first day of class to inform me that she didn’t allow hats in the classroom. “We’ll have to do something about that,” she added, referring to my headscarf. Sitting at my desk in the back, I gaped like she’d slapped me, […]
/ Mar 30, 2019 03:34 PM / No Comments on What my average working day looks like / 464 viewsWhat does your average working day look like? And how did you became interested in Islamic topics? My first task in the morning is to read and answer the questions I have received through my site, email or on tumblr. After that I work on any programming project that my clients have sent me. If […]
/ Apr 19, 2018 04:10 PM / 3 Comments on A Traditionalist Critique of the Islamic Prohibition on Taṣwīr (Making Drawings and Statues of Humans and Animals) / 16058 viewsTo many Muslims today, it will sound patently absurd if someone were to tell them that it is a mortal sin for them to draw a cat. But some religious scholars would tell you that drawing a cat is an act of taṣwīr (the depiction of living things in paintings, sculptures and elsewhere), a sin for which […]
/ Nov 10, 2018 04:59 PM / No Comments on Ijmāʿ as Scientific Consensus: Defining Consensus in Islam and Ending Its Abuse / 7422 viewsIjmāʿ (“consensus”) is one of the most abused concepts in Islam, used as a weapon by many in order to claim that no one has the right to disagree with them. It helps shut down free discussion and intimidate independent Muslim thinkers into keeping silent about their views. Ijmāʾ, as it is used in scholarly rhetoric […]
/ Jul 04, 2017 12:02 AM Email: contact@hawramani.com | Twitter Languages: English, Arabic, Persian / Farsi, Southern Kurdish I am a US-based Islamic studies researcher, software engineer and writer. I am currently working on completing Al-Azhar University’s curriculum for ʿālims (PhD Islamic scholars) on my own. I consider the Quran the unchanged Word of God and I derive my worldview from […]
/ Dec 28, 2017 05:02 PM / No Comments on Why Muslim women cannot marry non-Muslims / 2631 viewsWhy are Muslim men allowed to marry a non-Muslim but Muslim women are not allowed? One theory is due to genetic and psychological differences between men and women, Muslim men will be better able to remain practicing Muslims and to bring up devout Muslim children even if their wives are Christian or Jewish, while Muslim […]
/ Jun 09, 2019 03:16 PM / 4 Comments on An Islamic Examination of Homosexuality as an Identity / 1445 viewsOur society trains us to think in a certain way (“If you disagree with me, then you’re hateful!”) and imposes limiters on our minds as we quote back popular talking points (“Love is love!”) without always examining them first or showing a willingness to consider different arguments. So I’m writing today, not as some moral […]
/ Feb 02, 2019 01:35 PM / No Comments on On deciding which madhhab to follow and the multi-madhhab approach / 923 viewsDo you hold certain school or mahdhab in Islam? If so, which one? Also, how do you pick one of them, or you don’t pick one at all and just go with what’s acceptable for you? Thank you. The concept of the madhhab is somewhat outdated because scholars are starting to have a multi-madhhab approach. […]
/ Mar 14, 2018 08:19 PM / No Comments on On proposing to a man as a Muslim woman / 311 viewsSalam Alaikum, I have a question, I want your opinion on it. There is a guy, he seems very nice conservative and holds good deal of manners and deen. He is single, I really would like to have a future with him. I’m not sure if he is looking for marriage now or if he’s […]
/ Oct 15, 2017 11:14 PM / 2 Comments on Islam’s theory of free will versus physical determinism: Why humans are responsible for their actions even though God operates the universe / 2170 viewsIn your essay “God, Evolution and Abiogenesis,” you said an atom has no power to move on its own. It is God who has to move every single thing that moves in this world. Given that, does that mean we don’t have free will? On the atomic level, it is due to the chemical reactions […]
/ Jul 27, 2018 03:31 PM / No Comments on How to be forgiving and mentally stronger / 899 viewsAssalamualaikum. Sorry to bother you but I think I really need to type this out. My heart has been so heavy lately. I feel like I am always the after thought with my friends (I am always made fun off and I always feel like the extra person) Maybe because I make it so easy. […]
/ Jul 27, 2018 03:36 PM / 1 Comment on On watching Quran videos during tahajjud / 613 viewsAsalamu aleikum, I just read your essay on tahajjud, which was very interesting, I didn’t know tahajjud existed. I have a question though: I’d like to watch videos of Quran recitations, so I can both hear it in Arabic and read in English. I’m wondering if this is okay, wouldn’t it be too much like […]
/ Mar 13, 2019 10:25 AM / 5 Comments on Gender dysphoria in Islam / 3599 views(1) Greetings. I have been following your blog and are fascinated by your wisdom in viewing life through Islamic lenses, but does not fail to be logical. I am a Muslim young woman in her mid-twenties and am thinking to be a transgender, because ever since I was little I sometimes thought myself as a […]
/ Dec 24, 2018 01:27 AM / No Comments on How to balance worldly goals and religious goals? / 454 viewsHow to balance worldly life and deen? I have a lot of personal worldly and spiritual goals. But sometimes I feel I give too much time to either my worldly or spiritually side. I end up confused and end up not “working” on any of it at all. Any advice? Sorry if it’s too confusing […]