"Newsflash": Pakistanis are far more advanced

Image source.

In Pakistan, by grace of Allah, population of villages is still much greater than of cities, although with much less basic necessities, health-care being top priority. This or few other deficiencies don't have to be part and parcel of villages at all. Nonetheless, overall village life and even of semi-Urbanite non-cosmopolitan city-dwellers in Pakistan is liberating. People like me, younger age with cell phones and internet, are becoming slaves of technology day by day, but we're still much more advanced in our human relations, in living a meaningful life devoid of avoidance & superficiality, and in being at ease with nature. Something Westerners - those who're baby-sit by tv and other visual and auditory devices - are very backward at. In the end, it's all about freedom to be Archetypical, Primordial Human, true to our nature forged in the image of God.

The realization of this backwardness is not limited to outward observers - i.e., Asians or Africans or those few in West who still adore nature and rawness. First, the movie Mr Lorax debunked the sterility of anti-nature and artificial living style of Western capitalism. Now, a high school in America is doing something about it: taking students on a 3 month term in a country-side region with no cell-phones, no Facebook and little internet. Please watch the video [click on the link pls] to feel how precious and advanced Eastern way of life really is.

'Mercenary Elites of Pakistan': Join the Bandwagon O Pakis!

In this article, i propose a simple, human resources solution to all ills of backward, savagic, extremist, poverty-ridden, illeterate, un-enlightened populace of Pakistan. (Its in the last para.)

In the US and NATO initiated war of terror - generously complemented with haughtiness, ignorance and pre-meditation - the mercenary elites of Pakistan under the leadership of that dictator (codename: you-know-who-only-lacked-sanity) championed the cause of humanity, justice and freedom (read: to kill innocents, be unjust & snatch freedom, esp. political freedom to choose govts they liked*). The "mercenary elites" of Pakistan composed of most educated and professional ones: military, bureacracy, hired politicians, US-sponsored or westernized journalists and academics. So it's not difficult to understand why they stress so much on (secular, wordly-only) education and on destroying indeginious madrassahs from the face of earth, which have always been independent, and inshaAllah will remain so.

However, our populace - the common believing men & women - have acted in “wrong faith”, against their own human nature by not imitating their leaders, aka killer mercenary elites. Why only should our liberal elite class have the privilege of working on ground for this project of "best last hope of the world" = USA?! Why do not "these" illeterate, radicalized, extremist 16 billion deluded Pakis mend themselves by their bootstraps? Do they not look at "ground realities" - the most logical argument? Perhaps these are the side-effects of malnourishment.

I failed to understand why our liberal elite is losing ground ever since they started licking imperialist powers' boots, starting with the treachary of Mir Jafir-o-Sadiq in 1800s. But, after years of contemplation, i've hint upon the true cause and its cure. Despite all treacheries and efforts to impose their infra-level ideologies on "deluded, extremist believers," little progress has been made due to little high-handedness of our elites. They should come few steps down, and pick the mike for the first time, for they've never explained their virtuous Dajjalic (aka, all goodness) schemes to the masses in the language the savages understand, no matter how vernacular, disgusting and lowly their local tongue may be. Make that amendment and you'll lo-and-behold and see how masses would flock to their destiny.

What's the destiny? What's the solution? What should the sub-human populace of Pakistan do to becomes acceptable to West and be happy and be Successful? Very simple. Em. US and NATO is on the move to enlighten 3rd world lately. They-who-don't-understand-or-believe-in-democracy need to be destroyed, even if it means destroying whole country, as in 99.99% of cases. For that soldiers are needed. Unfortunately, an American life is much more valuable (and costly too) than a non-Western. So all Pakis should join the battle against ignorance called anti-Americanism be America's boots on grounds. A-BOGS! Few dollars guaranteed with all perks a homeless American enjoys.

_______________________________
* Some lunatic in state deptt was asked about the fate of new political system in Iraq. He however was categorical to rule out any possibility of a democractically elected Islamic govt. alhamdulilah.

Comforting our Women

Those women who live in their houses and do domestic work, when as per Islamic fiqh they've no obligation to do so, are doing jihad in the way of Allah that is Equal to the jihad of men in the battlefield. SubhanAllah. And, how do cultural Muslims behave? They treat them like domesticated animals, in fact i've seen many taking more care of their dogs than their wives. This may sound like exaggeration, but by care i do not mean they beat them, or do not fulfill their health or other needs, but in terms of love, intimacy, and kindness. So this mistreatment of women is all cultural thing whereever it is. Yet, i deny that muslims have monoploy over domestic violence which is another subject; Shaykh Hamza Yusuf mentions that killings or violence against women in US alone is cause most by their boy friends or husbands, and they're not Muslims. Moreover, many convert women to Islam talk about a different kind of respect they receive in Muslim societies which is absent in west and that is of bashfulness in Muslim men, which we're losing thanks to the onslaught of westernized media that commoditizes women.

I'm insipred by Prophet Muhammad, s.a.w, hence i take honor in serving my mother and other women with tea or stuff like that. Muslim men have a very hard time understanding that women should be treated well if one wants to be a good, in fact, best Muslim. Its all in Prophetic sunnah and teachings. But, at the same time, in this age we see this tendency that men become slaves of their wives and supersede the instructions of their wives to that of their mother or father. It's happening all around us. It's a dark age we're living in. May Allah protect us from these evils... wa ma taufiqi illa billah

Soulless Education

"I fear most the new highly educated class of this country. They have high IQs, are very intelligent, very skilled and professional. They're eloquent as well. But. They lack basic human elements and qualities & courtesies such as humbleness, sacrifice, humility, etc. etc. They have become soulless."

This thought reminds me of the conversion story of former British PM's relative, who went to Palestine on a visit. During a cold night, she was trembling in cold because she didn't have blanket or stuff to sleep in. Then a Muslim lady, her destitute host, shared her own blanket, so that her guest could sleep well. This display of generosity changed her perceptions about Muslims, where she previously considered Muslims to be sort of demons of terror, and now she encountered angelic behavior from same people.

The lady might be very poor and be ill-educated (by educated i strictly mean getting modern school/college education), she might have least of IQ, or awareness about social sciences and what not. But, the quality of character, which impressed an educated lady, is also unmatched and operates at a different plane, of which modern education has no sense of.

In fact this moral education is no more a part of modern university education (at the least). "Julie Reuben, a professor at Harvard has written a book about how morality and character development were explicit goals of university education in the early twentieth century, but these goals were abandoned in favor of a purely technical education later on," writes Dr Asad Zaman who became a victim of the social sciences of West during his education at MIT. In the same article, he narrates how imitation of Western professionals and philosophies of life turned him into a soulless human:

At a personal level, I saw my fellow students attitudes towards others to be selfish andexploitative, instead of caring and compassionate. Having absorbed the implicit message that professional accomplishment was the goal of life, I was shocked to learn of the really pathetic personal lives of many of the professionals I had thought to emulate. The general philosophy that individual goals are valued above social ones leads to betrayal of wives and families, violation of commitments of all types, and pursuit of personal and career goals even at expense of society. The purely technical education offered by the West does not teach us anything about the crucial parameters which govern how meaningful our lives are. In several crucial dimensions, the lessons of Tableegh were diametrically opposed to those which I had absorbed in the course of my Western education. These lessons showed me that the teachings of Islam are as fresh and as revolutionary today as they were fourteen centuries ago; they do not stand in need of updates for modern times. It is impossible to convey these experience-based lessons in writing, so I will just describe one of them.

Doctors' Strike in Pakistan: Historical Precedents

I've been given some articles about global strikes made by doctors in different parts of world, so as to link it with the current strike that took place in Punjab of Pakistan. This strike was made by all of 11,000 of junior government doctors who're working 90 hours per week and paid less than well off chefs, police Constables, or even teachers in many schools. Also, i'm studying the ethical question related to a doctor protesting, abandoning his patients, which is portrayed or is perceived by general community as horrifying and unimaginable. I'd only request ourselves to put ourselves in doctors' shoes, and see how things go about.

Following are some of the global strikes which have striking similarities with Punjab strike that i'm studying currently

- A decade of conflict and strikes by Malta Doctors & Medical Students
- European Doctors Migrate & Protest against Low Pay & Poor Working Conditions

Moreover, i've been given journal articles on the ethical question of doctors protesting. Will update more when i finish reading stuff.

Breaking the Ice: Benchmarking Army Personnel's Social Networking

My friend comes to my home, and asks me for help. He wants me to count people in my neighborhood whom i know. I struggled to name any at all, but eventually 3 people came to my mind in a town of of over a lac people, i presume, at least! I said to him that i'm in trouble. I ain't no good at knowing my neighbours, this is a serious lacking from Islamic perspective. So i asked him, how to penetrate and break the ice with these people in this modern town.

Remember, its a characteristic of modern cities, according to sociologists, that communal life doesn't exist there. In modern cities, neighbours usually don't know each other much, but people are very active socially on networking platforms (offline it mentioned, but online as well). What a paradox.

He suggested me a tested tip: Send a formal letter with minimum words, in most elegant manners, to your neighbor calling them on a tea. This is a practice of many an Army people who do this when they come into a new place.

I'm writing the letter as a BETA version here.

______________________________

House # ABC
Street # Alif. Bay. Pay
Mr/Mrs _________

Assalamualaekum!

I'm Muhammad Umer Toor, a business student at a university in Lahore. I'm living in ______ with my father. I'm new here, so I want to have chat with you over a cup of tea at my home.

This is mobile # ________. My notify me your arrival date and time, and we'll catch up anytime of your choice.

Regards
Muhammad Umer Toor
[university name]
External Researcher @ R&D Labs,
Kirana Bar School.

Extreme Sun, Extreme Man

Sunspot.

For past one century, for past one decade, humanity has seen such crises bigger than any crisis in civilizational history, other than the flood of Nuh or such incidents. Conditions in world have become extreme producing extreme reactions by people of any world-view. One important 'out of control factor' is the catalytic effect of Sun's energy on human mind, just as sun plays a predominant - which is too small a word - in every physical happening and variation; just as sun can destroy space satellites, annihilate electricity in Canada, nullify semiconductors - it also tinkers with sensitive electric currents of human brain.

If we see past 250 years of history of sun's activity - its storms, its 'sunspots' (which emit electro-magnetic rays and flares out of it) - it has reached its peak in 20th century (see photo below in which timeline is given along with sunspot cycles). Its heat and energy emissions have become more intense than anytime before. Sultan B. Mehmood, a Pakistani atomic scientist, could not understand why the effects of sun and its magnanimous variations should not be studied on human mind and behavior. This led him to study human history and sun's history, side-by-side, of past 250 years. He penned the book, in 1997-8 (?) and came out with startling predictions which turned out to be remarkably true.

The core prediction was about the rise of agitation, restlessness, aggression and terrorism in next decade; about the physical, earthly disasters we'd see from 2008-2017 along with political turmoil and violence. Studying the 'cosmic effects' of sun spots and sun storms on human mind and moods, he said back then that next decade would manifest extreme human behaviour which if not controlled will create havoc and crises. The bottom line is: if you can have control on your charged emotions, it turns into positivity - creativity, productivity, life, thought and civilization. He adds, "Make the hay while sun shines." Hence, extremism in behavior and outlook, is a major human problem everywhere.

When the attacks of 9/11 took place, intelligence agencies arrested Mr. Method and interrogated, "What you wrote in your book has turned out to be remarkably true. Maybe you are the master-mind behind these attacks." The author only had to say, "When i wrote the book (in '98) I also sent its copies to President Bill Clinton, PM Tony Blair and other heads of state urging them to show leadership to ensure peace." (These are not exact quotes as I am relying on memory.)

The book is written in a very acute scientific manner which is, nonetheless, highly readable by laymen. It is also punctuated by such sections on Sun's role in 'the choice of marriage and children', etc. It has useful advices for people from all walks of life from politicians to entrepreneurs It is very statistically and methodically written with case histories of events occurring in past 250 years both on sun and earth.

Sunspot cycles and timeline

SMS Conversation: History and Relgion, 'Policy Lessons' for Each Ego

Umer: One must have a basement in a house especially if he wants t0 launch a business. Shams and Nirwani, founders of Telezoo.com, invested $1 million in this start-up of theirs. To keep it low-cost in the beginning, the office of Telezoo was located in the basement of their home.

Bahawal: As far as the basement idea is concerned, I'd rather prefer to have an underground air-conditioned gym or a cozy library/study then 'waste' it for entrepreneurial purposes :-) :P

... We scholars usually don't like to talk much this money making business. Just give us a little respect, a bit of fame and acknowledgement and a few fat books to analyze. That's all you want. Lols...

Umer: (After critizing on fame part with a Urdu couplet, asks) And what books and articles are you reading these days?

Bahawal: Hmmm... I'm reading but haven't fully understood a book by Dr. Sayed Abdul Latif, The Mind that Al-Quran Builds. (Also) I'm reading a book History of the Saracens by Syed Ameer Ali. Then I'm also reading, History of the Arab Peoples. Apart from that, I've been reading some articles on internet on Babylonia, its culture, the city of Ur, etc. And, the major points of conflicts b/w the three Abrahamic religions, and the list goes on.

Umer: Please keep telling as long as you can comfortably. Its so informative foe me.

B: (Smiles, through a gesture) ... To sum up its been all history and religion (that I am studying). And, I realize that we need badly to turn back to Allah, repent asap, understand the balanced path, and start hating in ourselves what we hate in others. We stupid and idotic people have already cost ourselves a lot through petty egos and pathetically limited reserves of knowledge, which we assume to be too much but which actually is too little. What do you say?

U: Yar! Excellent analysis! That's what many top pious scholars (more or less) are saying! SubhanAllah! May Allah guide us to the right path and give us taufiq (power) to realize and act upon these useful insights.

B: May it be so! I wish we all see the right path.

Facebook: Consumer or Consumed?

Recently I made a dubious act of creating my friend's facebook account. I deactivated my own facebook account a year ago or so, out of utter frustation. I was frustrated with how much it consumed me, when i was supposed to consumer it. It was no good. I had to write two posts to debunk the myth of usefulness of it. But I failed it in a single phrase:: I consumes you...

This I experienced when i used a bit of his account to set it up. Soon an urge was sweeply mildly to get into this mass culture of verbosity, futility, empty socializing which is deviod of pure human-interaction, all of which backfires what facebook is for: connecting people. Surely, it helps one to find anyone. But that is only the beginning point beyond which it can never go. And 90% or more people are involved in absolute things even beyond non-essential, bordering on insanity (shooting people by pressing a button without even seeing him, clicking mouse 74 times in a minutes, and list never ends).

As far as the recent attack on FB from Islamic quarters and the counter-attack from modernized Pakistani media writing sentimental poetry about it, writing editorials (showing their ideological slavery to profane Western ideologies), etc., though mild - I wish to say only this: Priorities determine how you view this. Those whose live revolve around a person, their Prophet, whom they love above everything else, their priority is to defend their freedom to free their Beloved, their Supreme Asset from any insult. It went counter to the right of a (disturbing) civilization, and its perpeterators in East, to insult.

When I entered his account, I felt an urge, as I said, to come back to FB. To join the mass culture, in culture. And do away with my identity and my immediate enviornment. To shameless ads on left, right, top and bottom . . . I did not feel at home. This proves the point Shaykh Hamza Yusuf made about TV which fits 100% for FB: Those who leave it, ifthey find themselves wasting their time on it, their quality of life improves. And. They don't wish to use it again.

The Path to National Destructions

The beauty of hadith has been well-defined by a Western author and commentator: Many of these [hadith] seem as if they were written just yesterday to deal with today's problems and issues." (The highlighted part serves as the basis for the fact that Islam is much about social sciences as such.)

Today's hadith struck my mind when I was turning pages of Essential Sufism (Suhail Academy Lahore). Please read and share your immediate reflections.

"Generations before you were destroyed because they declined to punish the powerful thieves yet were relentless in punishing the small pickpockets."

Some years ago, my brother's friend hit a plan and attempted to steal his car with one of his uncles. Praise be to Allah, the car was recovered within hours. My parents had the opportunity to take severe legal action beyond registering FIR, and other short-term legal action. But because the "friend" had some social influence, they influenced our relatives to let go of the 'poor souls' who had attempted to steal car by inviting my brother to their place!

Resultantly, we let go of them! Because they were "powerful"! Allah! This is not a suitable example, I know, but the one I know. See Musharaf! Look at Bush! Look at Mr. Madoff, who plundered so much money, yet only house-arrested! Look around yourself in Pakistan... Countless stories that unfortunately show that we're destroying ourselves. If some poor guy had stolen mere 1000 Rs/- surely my father and brother would have forgiven him - but no society would have pleaded in favor him, they'd only suggest penalizing him. Because they beat a pickpocket in a street so brutally why won't they hesitate suggesting breaking his backbone privately... But I still see hope!

wa ma taufiqi illa Billah!

True Content of Modeling

I despise female modeling. Its near to prostitution for it commoditizes female body, and all commodities are salable. Hence if money can be a price for the evocative splendor of female body it is prostitution in Islam, argues Hamza Yusuf.

I love these expressions of my nephew; I've absolutely no idea from where did he borrow these exotic visual details and modeling.

Ayyan, age 4, height N/A.

* Pictures taken by Noor.

9 Tips for Surviving School

Praise be to Allah, whose praise should precede every writing and speech,

And may blessings be upon Prophet (S.A.W) and his family.

I received a mail today. It read:

Although this is for the Western school going youth but some of us might find it applicable in some contexts within our society.

What followed was an article, 9 Tips for Surviving School. I have produced excerpt of it. Read the whole article here. I found it very useful, and I wish if schools publish such articles in their magazine.

******

"Surviving school as a Muslim youth in the West is not easy. The social requirement upon youth to not only excel in studies but also to exhibit ideal, Islamic behavior outside and inside the home makes leading a healthy student life a truly daunting task. With the combined social pressures of school, family, and friends many youth wonder if it is even possible to balance school and Islam. Sadly, the question is now being increasingly asked: “Is it even feasible to practice Islam in the West?”

It is important to remember that today’s problems are not new nor are their solutions impossible to find. While admittedly the situation of students in the West is far from ideal, all hope is not lost. Here are some quick and simple tips to help the average Muslim student survive school:

1. Find a good social circle: The most driving influence in the life of a student is his social circle, upon which he depends for fulfilling his social and recreational needs. Depending on one’s group of friends, a person is likely to make strikingly different choices in life. A good friend is one who can entertain you and at the same time bring you closer to Allah. If you cannot discuss serious, personal, or religious issues with a colleague, it is likely that your relationship with him is shallow and improvident. Pick friends whose company will improve your character and provide you focus and direction in life. Do not be afraid to lose friends in pursuit of saving your iman. In the end, it is your religion that has priority.

2. Halal-ify your home: Half of a successful student life involves improving the environment outside the house, while the other half depends on having a healthy and Islamically-conducive home. In order to make your home free from distractions, create a quiet and comfortable workspace for yourself. Avoid at all costs the proximity of a television and the internet. Limit your useless activities on the computer by placing it in a high-traffic room. Try to spend as less time alone as possible. Study with someone nearby who will not distract you from your work but will also prevent your mind from wandering and engaging in harmful activities.

3. Spend quality time with family: An important aspect of improving the home environment is improving one’s relationship with family. Avoid domestic quarrels and familial disputes by spending quality time with parents, siblings, uncles, aunts, etc… Take out a half-hour daily to sit and converse with parents. Let them know what you do outside the home and you will gain their trust. Talk to them about your problems and personal dilemmas even if the solutions they provide seem wrong. If individuals inside the home seem unapproachable, look for counsel outside the direct family. Most importantly, if you yourself are an older sibling, make the effort to be a good adviser and counselor for your younger brothers and sisters.

4. Guard your gaze: The most common cause for loss of focus and poor memory is negligence in guarding the gaze. When a student’s mind wants to concentrate on reading, lectures, or work, his evil gaze forces it to daydream about sports, movies, cars, the opposite gender, etc… Avoid these distractions by looking down in the hallways at school and spending as little time as possible in mixed settings. Free yourself from television and internet addiction by simply ridding yourself of access to them. Have a parent regulate and supervise your internet usage through parental control software. Share your passwords with family members to avoid the possibility of engaging in illicit relationships." [Cont'd]

What is your strategy to change a society?

(Time to reflect deeply)

Do we need surgery or medicine to cure a dying organism, i.e., a society? What approach would you take as an educator in your school; as a family member in your home; or if you are given immense POWER over whole society? Let the bird of your imagination soar in heavenly clouds...