A Monolithic Islam? Forget About It!

Last updated on: June 13, 2014 at 2:38 pm By Ro Waseem

People trouble me, sometimes. Why are people so judgmental, I often find myself wondering? Perhaps, it is because a judgmental heart lacks introspection. I think that’s it. Yes, lacking introspection! One of the most troubling trends I see within the Muslim community is the amount of hatred and suspicion towards Muslims who adopt different approaches and interpretations of Islam. With the Takfeeri ideology (ex-communication) on a rise, nearly every Muslim considers himself to be “rightly guided” and others, even if... Read more

A Fatwa to the Fatwa Declaring Online Chatting HARAAM!

Last updated on: June 5, 2014 at 12:46 am By Ro Waseem

Lo and behold! A fatwa has been passed by His Holiness Sheikh Abdullah that a man chatting with a woman is HARAAM! Given the fact that this comes from a “senior scholar”, his opinion must be right. I mean, surely you weren’t thinking of using your brains for once? BECAUSE THAT IS HARAAM TOO! After all, these folks dedicate their lives to spread the word of Allah and His messenger! We must listen and obey. Except, maybe not! What’s rather... Read more

How The Narrative of Isra & Miraaj Paints A Negative Picture of God

Last updated on: May 26, 2014 at 3:03 pm By Ro Waseem

The night of Miraaj approaches us, which according to the traditions (not Quran), is the night in which the prophet supposedly went on a journey to the heavens to communicate with God. While some say it was a physical journey, others maintain it was spiritual. But that’s not my main concern here. Let’s just ignore that this story portrays God to be a heavenly entity, portrays Mohammad (salutes and respect) to be the most superior prophet of God, expects us... Read more

The Islamic Reformation Is Here!

Last updated on: May 20, 2014 at 7:00 pm By Ro Waseem

“It took many years to cleanse Arabia of it’s “false idols.” It will take many more to cleanse Islam of it’s new false idols–bigotry and fanaticism– worshiped by those who have replaced Mohammad’s original vision of tolerance and unity with their own ideals of hatred and discord. But the cleansing is inevitable, and the tide of reform cannot be stopped. The Islamic Reformation is already here. And we are all living in it.” – No God But God by Reza... Read more

2 Extremely Valuable Lessons Everybody Ought To Learn From The People of Musa!

Last updated on: April 17, 2015 at 9:55 am By Ro Waseem

Very early in the Quran (2:49 onwards), we encounter the narrative of Musa and his people. In my view, his people demonstrate some of the most fundamental errors religionists commit when approaching religion. Reflecting upon these short-comings, and thereby gaining wisdom and inspiration from them is the purpose of this blog. If you’ve read the Quran, you would be well aware that it delves extensively on the narratives of previous communities. The purpose of this is not to provide history... Read more

Ibn Rushd

Last updated on: May 10, 2014 at 12:45 pm By Ro Waseem

1) The biggest enemies of Islam are the ignorant who pronounce Fatwas of disbelief on others. 2) If you want to control ignorant people, then present falsehood from a religious outlook. 3) It seems very unlikely that God would endow us with a brain, and then reveal to us a religion that goes against it (Galileo said the same thing). Attributed to Ibn Rushd (Averroes) Read more

The 4 Major Factors That Fuel Religious Fundamentalism | Ro Waseem

Last updated on: April 18, 2015 at 7:25 pm By Ro Waseem

I have a mantra on life that I wish to share with you: Ignorance enslaves, breeding hatred and extremism; while knowledge liberates, breeding compassion and understanding. Fundamentalism, which I define it to be a very non-pluralistic approach operating on absolutes, stems from ignorance – and thus only breeds negativity. It is a venomous disease that kills positivity, and needs to be identified and cured on a very personal level. As a Muslim, who in his earlier days had adopted quite a fundamentalist... Read more

Music: Forbidden in Islam?

Last updated on: April 17, 2015 at 9:57 am By Ro Waseem

The topic of music is one that is much discussed among Muslims, especially the youth. The web is full of humongous articles outlining the tiniest details of which instruments are allowed (if any), and the forums are full of questions regarding music. At a time when we should be focusing on matters like education, justice, and human rights; we’re still stuck at an almost laughable issue: Whether it is permissible for a Muslim to listen to music or not? But... Read more

Kassim Ahmad: The Hero We Don’t Deserve!

Last updated on: March 28, 2014 at 1:29 am By Ro Waseem

We, Muslims, have come to a point where we revere scholars who push absurdities in the name of Islam, but slander those who seek to purify Islam from the dogmatic image it has acquired. Getting all our knowledge of Islam from these scholars instead of reading the Quran for ourselves, we, as a whole, have become so perplexed that we can’t even distinguish between concepts that are Islamic and concepts that are un-Islamic. So, our current condition is our karma.... Read more

Stop Monopolizing Allah!

Last updated on: March 26, 2014 at 12:32 am By Ro Waseem

Amidst the mournful incident of MH 370, it was reported recently that the Malaysian Islamic Propagation Organisation (Pekida) was willing to suffer a bloodbath for Islam and the country, including defending the word “Allah”. Bloodbath – right. Thanks for using such a non-violent term to represent Islam. We really needed that! Ironically, the biggest enemies of Islam are not people outside of Islam, rather the very prominent representatives of Islam who, for some reason, never fail to bring shame to... Read more