Plus ca change plus c’est pareil (the more it changes,the more it’s the same).A Professor Emeritus is visiting from France.He is presenting “A Theory of Cancer”.Aha.That’s going to do it! Another Theory!At least since Descartes the French intellectuals have been producing theories.What’s more is the iconic theory of Descartes”Je pense donc je suis” is the opposite of the Truth! In fact ,it is only when you stop thinking that you discover who you really are.The world is falling apart but not for lack of theories?! It would be much more effective to teach people to see,hear and feel rather than to spin out theories like spiders spin webs.We are like the insects caught in these thought webs.Let’s become humans(insan in Arabic) once again.
All posts by jebrahim2@gmail.com
Wahhabbism-A brilliant Summary
We generally try to avoid politics.But this is a story with all kinds of spiritual implications across the Muslim world and now internationally.Well-worth the read.Salaams,Ibrahim
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/kingdoms-failed-marriage-why-its-time-saudi-arabia-martinez-castillo
And the second article-Read the two and you will have a good understanding of what is going on in the Muslim world and elsewhere.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-yousaf-butt-/saudi-wahhabism-islam-terrorism_b_6501916.html
Don’t Be Deceived by Outer Appearances
As part of our Pilgrims’ Progress outreach I went to two different Sufi gatherings in the last two weeks.One was in a lovely centre with plush carpets and comfortable cushions finely decorated in Moroccan tones.The other was in a murid’s appartment that reminded me of how we lived as students.The first Dhikr was attended by approximately seventy five people.There was a delicious meal served at the end.The ritual was rich and complex.The second dhikr was attended by two men on one side and two women on the other side.In the first Dhikr I could feel almost nothing.A very slight sweetness developed over time(It was dhikr after all!).In the second dhikr the entire ritual consisted of listening to a tape of the Teacher.The Presence was powerful and sublime.The “hudur” of Allah was everywhere in the room.Don’t be deceived by outer appearances. Salaams,Ibrahim
Personal Will vs. Divine Will.
(A recent significant Facebook exchange)
“Sometimes life knocks you on your ass… get up, get up, get up!!! Happiness is not the absence of problems, it’s the ability to deal with them.”
Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free
Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free
Joel Ibrahim Kreps That sounds too much like American hubris to me.You have to understand that it is God that is knocking you on your -ss.And it’s not all about you and your will,Steve. Being knocked down is purposeful .It’s a teaching moment.And the first lesson, that Steve totally misses here, is that he is not in charge! Once you get that,not easy for arrogant Westerners bred on the omnipotence of Science and Personal will, you have taken a huge step.Alhumdulillah.
Joel Ibrahim Kreps The second lesson has to do with one’s proper relationship to the Omnipotent One who is in charge.I’ll leave it at that for now.
Communication
In the past, I often felt guilty about communicating with people-except for the essentials of course.I can still remember going to an Indian reserve in Northern Quebec where no-one talked unless they had to.It was unsettling after being raised in a noisy Semitic environment. It felt a bit like Woody Allen visiting the Catholic family of Diane Keaton in Annie Hall ,I believe.He had images of his own Brooklyn -based family shouting at each other across the dinner table in order to make a point.With his in-laws everything was prim and proper and he was clearly ill-at-ease.
Nowadays I think I would love that Indian reserve.The silence was like that of a Zen monastery ,in the middle of family life with women taking care of the cooking and the kids and men preparing to go out to hunt.Everyone seemed peaceful.
Nevertheless,I have become convinced of the value of communication.Whereas I used to consider it an unnecessary leisure activity,and it surely is in some contexts, I now see it as a spiritual obligation- somewhat like praying together or eating together.This is probably why I now post regularly on Facebook and keep up this blog.Whatever I can share with others and whatever I can learn from their feedback ,it is all for the good.After all,where would we be if our Prophets and our awliya(saints) did not communicate.
One thing that troubles me ,however,is something I have noticed with the younger generation.They tend to just break off the conversation as soon as their immediate needs are met.This happens on Facebook,on chat, by email or in texting.Suddenly they disappear off the radar.I call this”ropey-dope” in honour of the technique Muhammad Ali developed to avoid his opponents blows and tire them out.For me,what feels right is to find a natural flow in the conversation and end it when it is becoming repetitive or running out of energy.Then I will say something like”I have a bunch of other things that need doing” or:It is getting late and I need my rest”.So we end the conversation in a smooth and polite manner and I feel that a good piece of work has been accomplished.Not so the younger generation.They just disappear.I guess this is just part of the cellphone texting generation.Or am I missing something?Salaams,Ibrahim
Community
(Upon the visit of some old Afghani friends). Many times I have been reminded of the need for community.My last tariqat was always reminding us of the need for brotherhood.Unfortunately, for cultural and characterological reasons, I could not relate to that brotherhood.But the need for appropriate community is still there.
This morning, as we were praying the Fajr salat,it became obvious again.The prayer alone is not the same! Our Prophet saws also reminded the ummat of the importance of the collective prayer.
For the doubters and skeptics,don’t think I am being naive.I am continually impressed by the kinds and intensity of the psychopathology of the people I meet in my office and outside. In fact what I see outside is often more intense than what I see in my office! for sure,people can be a pain in the b-tt!
I am also aware that obligatory and inappropriate community is not the answer.Every week I hear of people who were badly served by being obliged to attend churches and Islamic schools that did not address their heart-felt concerns.So that won’t do ,either.
NBut let’s not throw out the proverbial baby with the bath-water.We all need support and help and confir mation.And community can help us with each of those.The next step is making this into something concrete.Inshallah,in the not too distant future.Salaams,Ibrahim
Obama ,Trump and the Intellect
(Response to a video praising Obama as “amazing” and Trump as a misogynist)
Forget Trump.He represents much of what is wrong with America but unfortunately he does represent America.Actually,Obama ,and I like the guy,is More of a problem! He represents political correctness to the nth degree and it is not healthy.It sounds good but it is all designed to please the audience.On this note, Trump is right.You have to break through political correctness to solve problems. I naively wrote a relatively short letter to Obama shortly after the start of the war in Syria,saying that he would be held to account ultimately,for not intervening just as Clinton regretted not intervening in Rwanda.Logistics of getting through aside,I know why he didn’t intervene.And its not because of the usual; conspiracy theories like not enough oil or to support Israel or whatever.He didn’t intervene because of another politically correct intellectual error-that you can figure out what to do by analyzing past similar interventions-specifically Afghanistan and Iraq.Wrong! Each situation is unique and comparisons don’t work.Our minds and their analysis don’t work-even if you are Harvard or Yale educated lol.Actually,especially if Harvard or Yale educated!. That’s why I use Istighara-the Islamic prayer for guidance.If you don’t believe me because this is too faith-based,check out “The Fog of War” and see what the secularist Robert McNamara had to say.He came to the same conclusion.Salaams,Ibrahim
Terrorism-2
(The Belgian Terror attacks.)As I watch the American electoral process and the concurrent fight against terrorism,I cannot fail to notice one item that is rarely addressed.”The search for meaning!” If you listen to the “democratic” politicians most of the discourse is about getting more and better jobs.Even the better ones,like Bernie Sanders,cannot get beyond some kind of economic justice.Is that all there is to life-good jobs for everyone.I call this the “meaningfulness deficit”.And it is much more serious than the economic deficit.Yes,the terrorists are wrong,and yes they have an heretical understanding of Islam.But they are searching for something that they are not getting in our wonderful; secular democracies.and they are willing to pay with their lives for their search.We better learn how to provide meaning in more healthy ways.And,sorry, but a Bachelors degree or even a doctorate(academic achievement as meaning) will not do it!
The Istikhara Prayer
(This is an answer to a request from an old friend for guidance. I have now added an important addendum at the end of the article. Be sure you read it before acting on this guidance! )
This is where Istighara is so important! We can’t figure this out with our mind that knows so little in reality .I am not referring to the usual perfunctory(habitual but superficial) Istikhara.Rather to the deep,soul-searching convinced Istighara. I remember having a discussion about this with a Sheik in Jordan. He was of the belief,and I gather that this is the usual alim position,that no matter what happened after the Istighara prayer, it was the will of Allah so all was fine.! All due respect to Shekh ——,I strongly disagree.That is like taking a hammer and saying no matter how I swing it the nail will go in properly.Wrong! Istighara is a skill we have to develop.
So here’s the teaching.I’m sure you know or can find the dua.That’s the thing the ulema teach first and the part that is least important.What is important is the attitude”Oh,Allah.I am weak.You are All-Powerful.I am relatively ignorant.You are all-Knowing.Guide me in this matter.” It is also very important, if you ask this question to Allah, that you remain open to the answer.If you have already decided what you are doing,don’t do Istighara! Because then if Allah shows you the opposite and you go ahead with your intention,you are in disobedience- “massiya”,big time! So first,humility and open-mindedness.
Then the answer may come in 4 ways(the last one I only discovered in the last few years):
1) Dream symbolism(sometimes people need help with dream interpretation.Be careful who you consult on that level because consultants are often full of prior convictions-no good).
2) Feelings in the heart.Sheikh Nuh seemed to use this one a lot.You ask a yes or no question.If you wake up feeling anxious and constricted,it’s a no.If you wake up feeling expanded and peaceful it’s a yes.Some interpreters feel it’s the same for colours in the dream-green and white are yes ;black and red are no.The heart can give many ,more subtle answers as well.You then need to listen to its soft voice.
3) Facts on the ground.These are the ayats(signs) of Allah.When I was at the beginning of my search and trying to get to India ,I ended up in Sweden visiting some old friends.I was lost because India was under flood alert everywhere.I was watching TV with my friends and a documentary came up about Jerusalem.I knew immediately that was my next step.That’s how I became Muslim.Don’t let the scholars diss TV to you lol.
4) And most recent-third parties sayings or dreams especially if the sayings are out of character for the person.That is a sure sign they are from Allah. In one of my more recent situations a cousin of mine called pleading with me to mediate a quarrel with his sister.I wanted to do it to help the family out and I did Istighara.My brother in NYC had a dream in which I was in an ugly fight with one of the family members and he felt worried about me.I pulled out of the offer and over time it was proven that I had made the right decision.I’ll spare you the details for now.
So do this carefully and follow the Guidance.It will save you a lot of grief.
Salaams,Ibrahim
Addendum: There are actually three types of Istikhara dreams! The first is a dream indicating our desires or wishes. These are the Freudian dreams and should only be used to understand your weaknesses. The second kind of dream is the fear dreams. This represents the projection of your fear-driven psyche.T hey are the dreams our Prophet saws told us to ignore. The third type and the one we can rely on are the Guidance dreams. Those are the truly useful ones. Now, admittedly, the distinction between these three is not always obvious.It takes a certain amount of intuitive discernment to make the distinctions.If you can’t figure it out, you can consult but be advised that the usual Muslim sources of guidance(Imams and scholars) are usually unreliable in this area as they do not understand the components of psychology involved. Psychologists and psychoanalysts are equally unreliable as they usually believe everything in a dream is a projection of our egos! Wrong! So proceed cautiously! Salaams, Sufi Ibrahim
Buddhism and Islam
Mahasi Sayadaw,one of the founding fathers of the Insight Meditation movement and teacher of Jack Kornfield says the following in”The Manual of Insight” his most famous work. Quoting the khuddaka Nikaya”O Great King,nibbana(nirvana) is incomparable.It cannot be described in its color,shape,size,dimension,likeness, remote cause,immediate cause,or any other logical way of thinking”.He goes on to say”nibbana has no colour ,form or size.It cannot be described by using a simile” This sounds exactly like the Islamic description of Allah.The last bit is almost word for word what the Quran says about God”He is beyond comparison.La mithla shay.There is no simile for Him”
So where is the problem?The Dalai Lama is insistent that there is no Creator God.Why does he say that?! Because there is a very serious theological error inherent in Buddhism.It does not recognize the link between the conditioned and the unconditioned,between the Creator and the created.It sees them as parallel tracks.That’s why I am a Muslim rather than a Buddhist.Salaams,Ibrahim