The Reliever (al-Munfarijah) is a poem composed by the great Tunisian scholar Yusuf ibn Muhammad at-Tawozari at-Tilimsanī (d. 1119 AD/513 AH). He was known for his mastery of the various Islamic sciences but his erudition and rhetorical abilities became his defining feature to the degree that he was known as ibn an-Nahawi (Son of the Grammarian).

al-Munfarijah is one of the most famous poems recited in North Africa and generally in the Islamic world. ibn an-Nahawi composed it in response to a request from his family who were living under an oppressive ruler. Ever since this poem has been taken up by Muslims and it became widely known for its efficacy. The poem is a combination of applied theology, spiritual counseling, and prayer. Reciting this poem in times of difficulty with a proper understanding of its meanings is known to bring relief.

This 3-part series was recorded at Mīzān Avenue in Sydney, Australia on August 12, 2018.

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I usually reserve book discussions and reviews for Andalus Book Club. However, in this episode, I chose to go through a particular book, "Radical Skin, Moderate Masks" by Yassir Morsi, because it’s a good representation of how a new generation of Muslim activists and Muslims in academia are thinking about the world and our place in it.

Topics addressed in this episode include the definition of autoethnographic writing, qualitative vs quantitative research, rationality, how to think about power dynamics in the world, critical race theory, the racialization of Islam and the construction of Muslim identity in the West, and the search for an authentic Islam.

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Islamic edutainment has failed in many respects to engender an Islamic ethos within the average Muslim. Are celebrity speakers, the culture of Muslim fandom, and sound bytes of curated content just a hollow shell of education, with more style than substance?

In this far-reaching conversation on the ImanWire Podcast, we discussed the phenomenon of Islamic edutainment, the impact of a media-centric culture on both education and the soul, and several other topics.

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Muslim activists involved in social justice movements are navigating a scene in which they ally with groups such as those promoting LGBQIT practices to be normalized and some have become voices for same-sex marriage campaigns. In doing so, they have abandoned an essential Islamic duty to command good and forbid evil and reversed it.

Topics addressed in this episode include the responsibility that comes with being a Muslim, paradigms of intellectual thought underpinning social justice activism in light of the Quran, changing attitudes towards homosexual practice and same-sex marriage, and a survey of the Quran's account of what happened with Lot and his people who rejected him.

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The approach to the Islamic Tradition in general and to Sufism in specific that is adopted by Western Muslims drives many to partake in practices and in some cases life-altering life decisions that make one fall victim to a classic deception of Iblees packaged as a spiritual calling. The previous episode garnered a polarized reaction that called for further commentary on the topic. 

Topics addressed in this episode include the need to study Arabic, what a tariqa and following a shaykh entail and how it can become problematic, as well as the nature of Hadras and why I'm against it.

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The religious drive and desire for spiritual attainment can be exploited if one doesn't know how to distinguish between the pursuit of Truth and the pursuit of experiencing a high. In this episode, the issue of pledging allegiance to a shaykh and a tariqa is discussed within the context of psychology and Islamic learning.

Articles discussed in this episode:

1996 Davis – Joining a “Cult”: Religious Choice or Psychological Aberration? http://andalusonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/1996-Davis-Joining-a-Cult-Religious-Choice-or-Psychological-Aberration.pdf

2007 Buxant et al – Cognitive and emotional characteristics of new religious movement members http://andalusonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/2007-Buxant-et-al-Cognitive-and-emotional-characteristics-of-new-religious-movement-members.pdf

2007 Murken and Namini – Childhood Familial Experiences as Antecedents of Adult Membership in New Religious Movements http://andalusonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/2007-Murken-and-Namini-Childhood-Familial-Experiences-as-Antecedents-of-Adult-Membership-in-New-Religious-Movements.pdf

2009 Crowley and Jenkinson – Pathological Spirituality http://andalusonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/2009-Crowley-and-Jenkinson-Pathological-Spirituality.pdf

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Ritual acts of worship in Islam are intimately linked with natural phenomena, and with the current reliance upon technology, many have created an artificial division that has resulted in the deprivation of the spiritual dimension of these rituals. This bonus episode features a Friday khutba delivered on the first Friday after Ramadan 1439/2018 was concluded with the usual debates about how to determine what day Eid fell on. This is not about whether calculations or moonsighting is valid. Rather, it's about recognizing the spiritual ramifications of the decision to follow calculations and how that impacts our knowledge of God and in turn our relationship with Him.

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Is covering the hair for women really obligatory as part of the Hijab? How can one make their intention for the sake of God for everything without making it exhausting to continuously do so? Is working to improve one's situation a sign of lacking acceptance of God's tests to us? These questions and others from the listeners were included in this wide-varying episode.

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Fasting is a practice that according to the Quran has been prescribed upon Muslims as it has been prescribed upon those who have come before. At the external superficial level, it's described as the abstaining from eating, drinking, and having intimate sexual relations from the break of dawn until sunset. However, there is much more to this practice that one must be mindful off lest they risk being included in the Hadith stating that many who fast get nothing from it other than hunger and thirst.

This 5-part series explores the inner dimensions of fasting through covering two texts from Imam Abu Hāmid al-Ghazaālī's magnum opus "Ihya' Uloom ad'Deen" (Revivification of the Religious Sciences". The first text covered was "The Book of Breaking the Two Desires", and the second was "The Book of the Secrets of Fasting". 

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Fasting is a practice that according to the Quran has been prescribed upon Muslims as it has been prescribed upon those who have come before. At the external superficial level, it's described as the abstaining from eating, drinking, and having intimate sexual relations from the break of dawn until sunset. However, there is much more to this practice that one must be mindful off lest they risk being included in the Hadith stating that many who fast get nothing from it other than hunger and thirst.

This 5-part series explores the inner dimensions of fasting through covering two texts from Imam Abu Hāmid al-Ghazaālī's magnum opus "Ihya' Uloom ad'Deen" (Revivification of the Religious Sciences". The first text covered was "The Book of Breaking the Two Desires", and the second was "The Book of the Secrets of Fasting". 

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iTunes Podcast https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/mohamed-ghilan/id1093009815