Malcolm X’s Letter from Mecca

There is perhaps no American Muslim who left behind a larger legacy than Malcolm X. Born in Omaha, Nebraska as Malcolm Little, he bounced from foster home to foster home until he eventually found himself in pri...

Imam al-Layth’s letter to Imam Mālik

For the context of this letter, please refer to this post. --- In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Form al-Layth b. Sa`d to Mālik b. Anas. I salute you with peace and praise Allah besides wh...

Imam Mālik’s letter to Imam al-Layth

Of the most famous intellectual rivalries in Islamic history is the rivalry of Imam Mālik ibn Anas and Imam al-Layth ibn Sa'd. Both were tremendous legal scholars, both founded a madhab, and both were intellect...

What I Learnt In 25 years of Marriage

“Today is our 25th wedding anniversary. So what did I learn? I learnt that a marriage is a game of give and take in which the more you give, the more you take. And that unless you give you can’t take. ...

Khutbah at the Conquest of Jerusalem 1187

Eight days after the conquest of Jerusalem, on the 4th of Sha’ban 583 AH, the first Jumu’ah salah in over 100 years was held in Masjid al-Aqsa. The khutbah was delivered by Qadi Muhiy ad-Deen ibn az-Zaki. The f...

Exile toward the Beginning

Someday we are bound to come back to the beginning. Even the most distant pathways always lead us inward, completely inward, into intimacy, solitude between our self and our self—in the place where there is no ...

Ali ibn Abi Talib’s eulogy of Abu Bakr

After the Prophet ﷺ‎’s death, there was no day more sad for the people of Madinah than the day of Abu Bakr’s passing. Upon receiving the news that his beloved friend  had returned to his Lord, Ali ibn Abi Talib...

The Counsel of Sidi Ahmad Zarruq

Ahmad Zarruq was a 15th century Muslim scholar from Morocco. A Berber of the Barnusi tribe, he lost both his parents within a week of his birth and was raised by his grandmother, an accomplished jurist in her o...

The book as your companion

Although a Mu’tazilite in theology, Abu Uthman Amr ibn Bahr al-Jahiz attained fame as a litterateur best known for his brilliant Arabic prose. Having written a massive collection of essays, poetry, jokes, and a...