The Needless Controversy over the Age of Marriage of Ummul Mu'mineen Hazrat Ayesha (ra) With Prophet Mohammad (Pbuh): Tracing the Possible Source of a Misconception about Her Very Early Marriage

By MV Muhammad Saleem Moulavi 29 November 2022 (Translated from Malayalam by: V.A. Mohamad Ashrof, New Age Islam) Ayesha (ra): Born CE 606; Died: CE 678 Father: Abu Bakr Abdullah bin Abi Quhafa (ra); Mother: Umm Ruman. She lived nine years in the Prophet's house and has narrated 2210 hadiths. Of these, 316 hadiths were reported by Bukhari and Muslim. Marriage with the Prophet It was during CE 620 that the Prophet married Hazrat Aisha. She was married at the age of fifteen. Honeymoon was at the age of eighteen. 1 She was the most knowledgeable person about Islam in the early Islamic era; a reference for them to seek the opinion of the Companions of the Holy Prophet in the interpretation of the Holy Qur'an and also the art of human moral life. Umar (ra) used to send people to Aisha...

Song, Dance and Music As Part of Islamic Sufism - Part 3

By S. Arshad, New Age Islam 30 November 2022 Dance Has Been An Integral Part Of Muslim Societies Main Points: 1. Dance is not a part of non- Muslim culture. 2. In Islamic countries traditional dance forms have existed. 3. In Tajikistan, men and women perform traditional dance forms like rapo and kulob. 4. Rapo is performed with poetry of Shams Tabrez, Khusrau and Hafiz. 5. In Morocco and Egypt, folk dance is still popular. ---- The general notion among the Muslims is that dance as a form of performing art is only a part of non-Muslim culture and society. In reality, dance has existed as a part of celebrations and festivities on the part of men and an expression of feminity and seduction on the part of women in many Islamic countries as well. In Morocco, dozens of...

Munshi Faizuddin’s Bazm-i Aakhir: A Picture Of Delhi From A Historian’s Eye And An Insider’s Memory

By Salman Khurshid 30 November 2022 The Last Gathering presents a picture of Delhi from a historian’s eye and an insider’s memory. It is also a handbook for the common reader interested in the life of the last two Mughal kings and life inside the Red Fort. It offers ideas of syncretism, empires and their impact, and evokes a cultural life in bloom through pre-eminent and contemporary personages such as Amir Khusrau and Ghalib. In 2012, when Ather Farouqui took over the reins of the oldest and most respected Urdu organisation, the Anjuman Taraqqi Urdu, Hind, established in 1882 to douse the fire of Urdu–Hindi controversy, he utilised his knowledge of Urdu and his translation skills to ensure Urdu was featured on the global stage again without diluting its authenticity. Anjuman...

Was the Waqf Beneficial for Muslim Society?

By Arshad Alam, New Age Islam 29 November 2022 Possibly It Hindered the Economic Development Of The Muslim World Main Points: 1. Waqf is sacred endowment created for a specific purpose 2. Although not Islamic in its origins, its use was widespread in the Muslim world 3. Due to its very nature, the institution was rigid and hence could not adapt to the demands changing times 4. It hindered the amalgamation of large capital which was essential for kick-starting the industrial age ------- The Sachar Committee, way back in 2006, told us that the total value of all Waqf properties in India was around 60 billion Indian rupees. In today’s value, it would have only gone north. Many Muslims have argued that if this money was put to better use, like funding of health and education,...

Muslim Intelligentsia Is Still Stuck In Islam and Quran: A Polite Rejoinder to Mr Shanavas

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 29 November 2022 The Habit Of Islam Being The Be-All And End-All And Blindly Considering This Faith To Be An Inventory Of Universal Wisdom Ails The Muslim Intelligentsia And They Distort Facts To Suit Their Agenda Of Islamic Supremacism ------ Most of the Muslims (NOT ALL) suffer from jump on the bandwagon syndrome and vulturing (a sociological term coined by the sociologist Bruno Latour). I'm saying this to prove Mr Shanavas' (Islamic) rejoinder to my article in which I pooh-poohed Adam and Eve as mankind's 'spiritual' parents. One more Muslim butted in unnecessarily. This is called Vulturing. Vultures have a habit of seeing and poking into the rotten flesh even if they're not hungry. Mr Shanavas, who's an out and out Muslim and is adept at theological conceits,...

Alas, Aaftab Happens To Be A Muslim

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 30 November 2022 News is that Aaftab's van was attacked by sword-wielding men belonging to a Hindu outfit. Reprehensible, to say the least! Will these Hindu goons attack a Hindu woman and her stepson for killing a man (woman's husband) and cut her body into pieces a la Aaftab-Shraddha episode? This gory incident also happened in Delhi, the country's crime capital. Why is someone's faith so important to us? I've been reiterating that crime has nothing to do with the perpetrator's religion and his/her esoteric beliefs. Image OpIndia: India Posts English ---- At the moment, Indian society is polarised on the basis of religion/s (read, Hinduism and Islam). Bad-blood had been brewing for quite some time but now it has come to a pretty pass. Now, we're living...

Song, Dance and Music as Part of Islamic Sufism - Part 2

By S. Arshad, New Age Islam 28 November 2022 Music Is One of the Fine Arts That Has a Soothing Effect on the Mind Main Points: 1. The universe reverberates with a subtle music. 2. Music of the Spheres refers to the music in the universe. 3. Plato believed man listened to music before his birth. 4. Rumi said that man has listened to the songs in the heaven. ------ Music is one of the fine arts that has a soothing effect on the mind. Music is a harmonious sound that is produced in a certain tone, pitch and rhythm. Man invented musical instruments to enhance the effects of poetry. In ancient times, poetry was not mean for reading. It was composed for singing in accompaniment of a musical instrument. In India, poetry was not recited or read before 10th century. Poetry and...

Remembering Indian Economist Dr. Nejatullah Siddiqi, the Father of Islamic Banking

By Dr. Mohammad Ghitreef, New Age Islam 28 November 2022 Dr. Muhammad Nejatullah Siddiqui Firmly Believed That The Period During Which Islamic Movements Developed And Operated Was Unique And Different ------ Dr. Mohammad Nejatullah Siddiqi (August 1931 - November 2022) ----- Dr. Nejatullah Siddiqi was an economist, but he was also a man of wisdom and original thought. This succinct essay picks out a few important ideas from his views and musings. Professor Dr. Nejatullah Siddiqi, 91, passed away in San Jose, California, the United States, where he was staying with his three sons and two daughters, on November 12, 2022. He was receiving therapy for Parkinson's disease for four years. Born to a humble family in a small town, Padrauna in Gorakhpur UP in 1931. Siddiqi initially...

Religion Has Institutionalized Gender-Bias

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 28 November 2022 The news is that Delhi's iconic Jama Masjid restricted the entry of unaccompanied girls but rolled back the decision under pressure. Jama Masjid, Delhi ------ That Islam is misogynistic needs no further elaboration. But when it comes to the entry of women into a shrine of any faith, innumerable restrictions are imposed on her. Whether or not she's menstruating, whether she has come with her brother, boyfriend or husband, is she young, middle-aged or old, is her dress too revealing or is she wearing loud make up; all sorts of silly, nay objectionable, questions are raised by the contractors of faiths? The question is: What makes all religions so antagonistic to women? Our troglodyte ancestors concocted super myths, albeit primitive. Then...

Allah Sent Prophets To All Nations: A Reply To Mr. Sumit Paul

By T.O. Shanavas, New Age Islam 26 November 2022 I Did Not Expect Such Rambling And Desultory Response From Mr. Sumit Paul Who Claims To Be Religion Expert, I Have Experienced Such Response From Hate Mongers ------ Initially I thought myself not to respond to Mr. Sumit Paul’s incoherent rambling essay to discredit my paper Adam and Eve: The Spiritual, Not Biological, Parents of Human Species When serious topics are discussed, I did not expect such rambling and desultory response from Mr. Sumit Paul who claims to be religion expert. I have experienced such response from hate mongers. He stated that Islam came after Judaism and Christianity. Of course, his claim is based on the misconstrued definition of Islam, Muslim, and Mo’min. I remind Mr. Sumit Paul that the Qur’an is the guiding...

Why Does Islam Need A Renaissance Urgently?

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 26 November 2022 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Until Muslims, Esp. Those Who Have A Semblance Of Reason And Logic, Introspect And Stop Thinking That They're Allah's Chosen People, This Religion Will Continue To Languish In The Dungeon Of Ignorance And Obscurantism ---------------------------------------------------------------------- I concur with Mr Ghulam Mohiyuddin that Islam does need a renaissance urgently. The problem with this desert faith is that it deserted logic and modernism right from its inception and the scenario is still unchanged. One glaring example is Qatar's ongoing charade of (predominantly) offering Islam along with the FIFA World Cup! That a universal sporting event like the Soccer World Cup...

Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose: ‘Look Here I Have Mixed Your Hindu And Muslim Cha And Made Jai-Hind Cha Out Of It”

By Saquib Salim, New Age Islam 26-11-2022 The British divided Indians in every possible fashion. As a result back then at public places, like railway stations, one could find separate water tanks for Hindus and Muslims, brazenly called. Hindu Pani and Muslim Pani. Similarly, food and tea stalls also had a Hindu or a Muslim tag…. Capt Lakshmi Sehgal with Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose ----- A Slice Of History When Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose organised Azad Hind Fauj, he ensured that communal division do not plague the national freedom struggle. Religions of soldiers did not define their commitment to India. Lakshmi Sehgal of the Indian National Army (INA) said, “Hindu, Muslim. Sikh and Christian all felt that they were Indians first, last and always.” In 1945, after the War was over,...