Wasim Rahman’s Random Thoughts

“Know, O beloved, that man was not created in jest or at random, but marvelously made and for some great end. Although he is not form everlasting, yet he lives for ever; and though his body is mean and earthly, yet his spirit is lofty and divine”

— Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali ابو حامد محمد ابن محمد الغزالی

“If you are irritated by every rub, how will you be polished?”

— Mevlana Jalal-al-Din Rumi جلال الدین محمد بلخى

“Oh My Lord! grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, the courage to change the things that I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

—   Dr. Ali Shariati  علي شريعتي

as-salaamu alaikum

New-comers and visitors to Washington DC often have a difficult time locating Friday Prayer (salaatul jumu’a) downtown. This issue comes up most frequently at the beginning of the summer, when interns have to hear about Friday services by word of mouth (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing) instead of being able to find a list somewhere. Unfortunately, the information on http://www.islamicfinder.net is out of date, and http://www.salatomatic.com is incomplete.

But for now, here’s what I can share, having lived in DC for the last three years:

Read More…

From Jesuit Heritage Week:

 http://explore.georgetown.edu/news/?ID=3…

“Georgetown values people who are of different traditions, it recognizes that society is diverse,” he said, discussing some of the values that attracted him to working as a Muslim chaplain at a Catholic and Jesuit university.

A chaplain-in-residence in Harbin Hall — a residence hall predominantly made up of first-year students, Rahman works as a counselor and mentor and has experience in interfaith settings.

When discussing his decision to come work with Georgetown students, he addressed them directly saying, “(Georgetown recognizes) you should be exposed to the ideas I have to bring; you should be able to dialogue with me.”

There are too few of these out there:

Hamd - Jimmy Attre

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJE8Gavz7SY

Ramadan Assalaam - Amir Liaquat

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr2BLmWLPYE

http://campusministry.georgetown.edu/55436.html

This has turned into a very fulfilling, but extremely demanding job.

Outlandish - I’ve Seen (featuring Sami Yusuf)

What happened to the ummah once known so well?
Greatness was known but now can you tell?
The Qur’an has left out hearts stranded, hanging on out walls
6232 verses, so strong
9 out of 10 of us can’t even read or write
1924 feels distant like way before Christ

1. Islam is an African American religion in Philly.
2. For all Philadelphians, the dessert of choice is water-ice (pronounced wooter-ice), and is basically some soft-serve ice cream with a snow cone.   
3. Not every African-American male with a long sunnah beard is Muslim, but many are.  The ones who are will probably make eye contact with you, and possibly say salaam if they can tell you’re Muslim.
4. Old City Cab comes a lot more often than Quaker Cab.  As everywhere else, most of the drivers are Pakistani, Sikh Punjabi or Bangladeshi.
5. The “Rocky” statue no longer sits atop the Philly Art Museum steps.  It was moved recently, disgracefully placed along the curb.
6. Muslim clothing is trendy here, to the point where some non-Muslim women occasionally wear headscarves and the pants-above-the-ankle look is trendy for black men (called the Philly capri).
7. Strangely the imam of the largest mosque in West Philly cannot speak a word of English, and often yells during the Friday Khutba (otherwise I’m sure he is probably a very nice, learned man).
8. There are no halal pizza places in West Philly.
9. If the last name “Rahman” is called out in a patient waiting room at either Hahnemann or Jefferson Hospitals, you should ask for the first name also.  Abdullah Abdur Rahman and Dawood Rahman were called up before me.
10. The Germantown Mosque brothers are a really loving group who enjoy life in a halal way.  Just don’t take photos of them or their mosque — they follow the salafi ruling on photography.

 This verse keeps popping back into my head for over a semester now:

لَوْ أَنزَلْنَا هَذَا الْقُرْآنَ عَلَى جَبَلٍ لَّرَأَيْتَهُ خَاشِعًا مُّتَصَدِّعًا مِّنْ خَشْيَةِ اللَّهِ وَتِلْكَ الْأَمْثَالُ نَضْرِبُهَا لِلنَّاسِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ

Had We sent down this Qur’an upon a mountain, you would certainly have seen it humbled, splitting asunder out of fear of God, and We set forth these parables to men that they may reflect.

Surat al-Hashr v. 21

You have to hear the Arabic somehow to really understand why it is so captivating.  The rhythm and sounds are such an important part of the intrigue:

Lau anzalna hadha-l qur’an AAala jabalin laraaytahu khashiAAan mutasaddiAAan min khashyati-llahi wa tilka-l amthalu nadribuha li-lnnasi laAAallahum yatafakkaroon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsO9b4WaJ_4

By the group Rejjan, about how Ramadan is observed in Sarajevo.  It begins and ends with the ezan (adhan, call to prayer).