Supplication in Asking for the Best

Sahife Sajjadia
By Imam Zain-al-Abideen

God,
I ask from Thee the best in Thy knowledge,
so bless Muhammad and his Household
and decree for me the best!

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Muhammad Iqbal, By Ali Shariati

If one were to reconstruct the form of Islam, which has been made to degenerate over the course of history, re-assemble it in such a way that its spirit could return to a complete body, and transform the present disorientated elements of Islam into that spirit, as if the trumpet of Israfil were to blow in the 20th century over a dead society and awaken its movement, power, spirit, and meaning, it is then that exemplary Muslim personalities like Muhammad Iqbal would be reconstructed and reborn.

My Lord, Grant Me . . .

My Lord, grant me the grace that my Faith (Iman) will not provide me with fame and wealth. Grant me the power to give away my wealth as well as my fame for the sake of my Iman. So that I may be of those who take the money from the world and work for Deen, nor of those who take the money from the Deen and work for the world.

Ali Shariati

Interview with Parsin, By The Pakistani Spectator

The Pakistani Spectator made an interview with me and published it today in here. I would like to appreciate them and particularly Ghazala Khan for giving me this chance. It was a wonderful experience for someone like me who is new to English blogs.

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Would you please tell us something about you and your site?
Yes, the site is called Persia, and it is mainly about politics, life, and religion as I understand them. I am a Muslim from Iran, and I have lived in US for more than a decade. I was a university student and have been into many places in US. I found Americans one of the most religious people in the world. They are mostly nice, kind, and honest people. However, I must say that the politicians are completely different. In my belief US politics, and in specific its foreign policy, is mainly in the hands of Jewish Lobby. They push US government into problems that are not even in the interest of US people. One of my purposes in this blog is to discuss these issues.

ISLAMIC PROTESTANTISM

The following is the transcript of a speech delivered in Teheran by Dr. Seyyed Hashem Aghajari on 19 June 2002. The speech was given at a commemoration of the 25 anniversary of the death of Ali Shariati, to whom Aghajari makes repeated references. Shariati was an influential Islamic political activist against the former Shah, who died before the 1979 revolution. The transcript is provided by gooya.com, and they have edited it for clarity.

ISLAMIC PROTESTANTISM

The Concept of Protestantism The Protestant movement wanted to rescue Christianity from the clergy and the Church hierarchy - [Christians] must save religion from the pope. We [Muslims] do not need mediators between us and God. We do not need mediators to understand God’s holy books. The Prophet [Jesus] spoke to the people directly? We don’t need to go to the clergy; each person is his own clergy. Shariati maintained that all the religious messages offered by formal and traditional religious organizations were antiquated, and that any protest against [these traditional religious organizations] was [regarded by the clerics as] a protest against Islam itself. “Core Islam” and “Traditional Islam” Part of Dr. Shariati’s work was to separate [what he called] ‘core Islam’ from [what he called] ‘traditional Islam.’

The Philosophy of Supplication, By: Ali Shariati Part(II)

“…..Thou, Lord! you who have given generosity to the sons of Adam, You who placed Your trust upon the shoulders of the children of Adam,
You who selected all of your prophets to teach the Book and establish justice,
You who say that greatness belongs to You, …we are Your people.

We have faith in You and the message of Your prophets. We ask for freedom, awareness, justice and greatness. Grant us these as we are greatly in need of them. More so that at any other time we are sacrificed by slavery, ignorance and weakness.

From Science to God - Peter Russell

The Philosophy of Supplication, By: Ali Shariati

My Lord, give me the capability to tolerate an opposing point of view.

My Lord, keep me wise and aware, so that I may not judge someone or some idea right or wrong unless I have understood him/her or it correctly and completely.

My Lord, help me so that I may be aware of the differences between humanity, thoughts, and relationships, and so that I may be capable of distinguishing each of them.

My Lord, give me absolute submission through faith (Iman), so that in the world, I may be in absolute rebellion.

Where shall we Begin (VII)

Let us summarize the points raised here.

Given our culture and specific definition of “enlightened” as a person with a prophetic mission, the objectives and responsibilities of such a person are to transform the existing social conflicts from the context of the society into the feelings and self-consciousness of its members.

A Poem from Rumi, How long will I keep burning in your flame

How long will I keep burning in your flame?
How long will you still turn away from me?
How many friends will turn from me in shame?
How long will I still hurt? How long will you be free?

 

from Rumi’s Kolliyaat-e Shams-e Tabrizi

http://www.iranian.com