This Is Islam ... This Is My Faith

يا شعب مصر ... مع تميم

2012-01-23T21:58:00.000+02:00

يا شعب مصر اللى سابقة ضحكته غضبه
ما يطلع الصبح إلا وصحبتك سببه
يا مخلص الأرض من وحشتها فى الأكوان
يا حجة الشمس تفضل طالعة ساعة كمان
مستأذنة وهى مش عادتها الاستئذان
متونسة بالميدان وبعشرته ونسبه

يا شعب يا مصلي قدام العساكر صف
يجري الجريح من ورا لقدام
لا خاف ولا خف
تدوس عليه العربية تحوله لميت الف
يا للعجب يقتلوه ويتوقعوا هربه
يا للعجب يقتلوه ويتوقعوا غيابه
اللي اتقتل لسه واقف هو واصحابه
ما بهدل الامن غير من ماتوا واتصابوا
والصبح ما نور الا اما الشموس غربوا

اضرب عليا انا مش جاري يا قناص
من امتى خوفنا يابن الكلب ضرب رصاص
كل اللي شاف الشهيد بقى تاره تاره الخاص
الدم صاحي وعنيد ولا تقبلوش تربه

يا شعب ياللي دفع تمن الشوارع دم
احفظ اسامي اللي ماتوا في الشوارع صم
الشارع اللي اصطفى وقصر الامارة لم
ملوك قليلة الرباية ركبوا واتركبوا
شعب بغزالة اتخنق قلب التاريخ في يومين
لابس عباية جحا وهو صلاح الدين
بيكرم الانبيا ويهزأ السلاطين
والفجر خيله وحبات الرمال عربه

يا شعب مصر اكم فرعون وفرعونة
ضربتهم ضرب سجادة في بلكونة
ضرب الملوك تربية صالحة ومضمونة
ما يبقوا بني ادمين الا اذا اضربوا
ضرب الملوك مصلحة
ضرب الملوك تأديب
محلى المماليك وهي بتجري في السراديب
ولولا ضرب شجرة الدر بالقباقيب
مابين اغا وباش اغا كان التتار غلبوا

بعدين مبارك سادات فاروق ماحدش دام
هو احنا شعب كده ما بيعيشلناش حكام
عقبال جيرانا وحبايبنا كمان يا سلام
لو كل من له رئيس نصحى نلاقيه قلبه

يا مصر لسه ولسه الثورة بلة ريق
ما ينتهيلك طريق الا ويبدا طريق
يا شعب مصر تعالى نتفق يا شقيق
رج الملك قبل ما تنعم عليه بلقبه
رجه كده شوفه ان كان الملك شغال
واسأل عليه المكوجي واسأل عليه البقال
واهم حاجة في صفاته انه يكون يتشال
متربي عال لما يمشي يلتزم ادبه

بتكون في احسن حالاتك وانت مش محكوم
بتبقى رايق ولا ظالم ولا مظلوم
بعدين ده ايه الغبي ده اللي يهددك بالشوم
يا مخلي الف احتلال ينزل على ركبه

يا شعب انت اللي كارم كل من حكمك
الدولة دي عارفة تحكم بس من كرمك
كشر لها وهي حتجيلك تبوس قدمك
مافيش حاجة اسمها مليون راجل اتغصبوا

سايق عليك النبي ما تقول كفاية يا شيخ
الملحمة لما تخلص يبدأ التاريخ
وبكرة جاية حروب فيها بكا وصريخ
وبكرة نصرك يخض الشمس من لهبه
سايق عليك النبي ما تقول كفاية كده
من النهاردة انتصاراتك حتبقى كده
يا شعب مصر اللي رجالته وبناته كده
حلال عليه لبن العصفورة لو طلبه
سايق عليك النبي ما تقول كده كفاية

الثورة دى بداية زى الهجرة والميلاد
الثورة دى بسملة كمل بقى الآية
مع كل مرة قراية حسنها يزداد
والآية تجرى تسلم أختها الراية
من غير نهاية وحتى الوقف مش معتاد
وبكرة أيامنا تبقى حكاية ورواية
عن ناس يباتوا حفايا يصبحوا أسياد

خمسة وعشرين يناير يا شباب حصل ايه
لو قلنا يعنى على الساعة تلاتة الفجر
فى حد فينا طِوِل أو جد حاجة عليه
أو جاب سلاح أو ملايكة بشروه بالنصر
كان يختلف فينا إيه عن أى يوم قبليه
نمنا غلابة، صحينا احنا ولاة الأمر

كان عرش مصر ف أُوَضْنا واحنا ناسيينه
راميين هدومنا على شماله وعلى يمينه
ونزلنا ع الميادين بإدينا شايلينه
بقوا الملوك فى الشوارع والعبيد فى القصر
وف يوم وليلة اكتشفنا ان احنا والنبى مصر
ومصر مش حد تانى غيرنا يعنى يا بيه
وكل واحد سأل طب كنا ساكتين ليه
وشعب مين اللى كانوا الزُّطِّ حاكمينه
بدولة شومة ومختومة بختم النسر
وكل واحد قرا اللى كان على جبينه
رفع بدمه يمينه هْدية وهداية
لو كانت الأنبيا ع المية مَشَّاية
لاجلك يا مصر مشينا باسمين ع الجمر
يا مصر وافتكرى أصل الدنيا نسايه
الملك ده حقنا ومفيش فراعنة جداد
إفرح وكمل وما تقولشى كده كفاية
الثورة دي بداية زى الهجرة والميلاد

مش بس مصر اتغيرت من وقفة الميدان
فيه مساحة ضلمة نورت فى طبيعة الإنسان
فيه حاجة ف طبيعة البشر زى السمع زى البصر
زى اكتشاف القدرة ع الطيران
فيه حاجة كت ضايعة وبانت
خلت الأمة استعانت
عالشقا بالله فهانت
هذه الدنيا على الفتيان

ارقينا وارقيهم يا عم الشيخ
فى حاجة خلت يشمك التاريخ
ينزل عن الوجه الجميل فيبان
والخلق كانوا مدركين
لكنهم مش كلهم متأكدين
لحظة ما شافوا بعضهم جوة المظاهرة
اصبحت واضحة وظاهرة
نعمة الرحمن على المستضعفين
وصلت رسالة ربهم من كل زهرة كل زفرة
كل نفرة كل زحمة في كل حارة او خناقة في الاشارة
كل كلمة حق
او ضحكة ولد او بنت
كانت دعوة مستورة الى العصيان

فى حاجة أصلا فى الطبيعة تدعو للثورة على السلطان
شوف الشجر رغم الحجر طارح ثمر زى الخبر وبتعلنه الأغصان
شوف الهوا حب اللِّوا فبقوا سوا هبَّة لها ألوان
شوف القمر يفضل قمر تحت الحصار
رغم اقتناعه إنه هايموت قبل ما يشوف النهار
تحصل مفاجأة تطلع الشمس ف حضوره
يختلط نورها بنوره
تشبهه ما تقولش واحدة من ولاده
هى معناه وامتداده
واخدة منه الموهبة والبغددة
وعشان كده
لغة يقولوا عنهم القمران

شوف النجوم ما لهاش نظام حاكم
تكسر كلمة العالم
يبص ويبقى مش فاهم
وهو شايفها ماشية بكيفها فى الأكوان

يا سما هويتك
انت بيتي وقلبي بيتك
تشبهيني واشبهك بالمعنيين
الشبهة يعني والشبه يام النجوم الفلتانين
وباموت انا في فلتانك الامني
لإنه عبقري وفني
وفيه منطق من الموجود في كل جنان
وبرضه باحبه بس كده عشان فلتان

فيه حاجة غامضة بتكتشف
هى اللى بتخلى الحصان اللى اتحدف
من بطن أمه ولسه مش عارف يقف
يقزح ويجرى ويعرف انه حصان
فيه حاجة بتخلى السجين المستكين فى كل حين اشطر من السجان
فيه حاجة بتخلى القوى عيِّل قوى وبيتلوى من نكتة الغلبان
فيه حاجة بتخلى عيون الخلق ما تنامشى
وبتخلى المدن تمشى
وتخرج زى كلمة حق من غير قصد مابترجعش لو طلعت
وم الأسمنت والأسفلت يفلت فلت نهر مقدس الجريان
فليحذر السلطانُ زحف الغابة
والورد إذ يستأنس الدبابة
داب الحديد من لمسته دوبان

فيه حاجة خلت خطة الموت ترتبك
عابس وعايز يشتبك
خاف من ضحية جاية ناوية تاخده بالأحضان
وإذا بهذا الفجر يا اخواننا اتولد بيننا
وكنا احنا بنستنى وهو كمان بيستنا
واتاريه بس عايز إذن منا وهو فى يميننا
فلما أذنا خد منا وعطانا أمان

يا مصر وانت لسه في البداياتبكرة اللي جاي اعظم م اللي فات
يا مصر قومي وبصي في المرايات
كان كل واحد في الميدان جايب معاه مراية
رافعها للسما
اشكال والوان كلها مرفوعة في العالي
صبحت مراية واحدة بتلالي
وبقت يا مصر الارض صورة للسما
لعبة بازل متكاسرة الاجزاء
لما البشر يتجمعوا تبان السما ع الارض
واما البشر يتفرقوا تلقي السما بتنفض
تبقى سما متوزعة جوه الشقق
وتمر ليلة من التوجس والقلق
وننام ونصحى تاني يوم
ترجع سما لما البشر يتجمعوا مع بعض

يا مصر حقك تملكي بدل السما اتنين
واحدة هدية وواحدة تانية صانعها مصريين
يا مصر لو دققتي حتلاقي البراق
بيجر عربية فواكه في الحواري الضيقة
شوفي الصحابة والحواريين على القهوة
بيتناقشوا بحرارة
والسما على مد ايدهم مستشارة طيعة ورقيقة
شوفي المساجد كت تشاور ع السما
صبحت تشاور ع البشر وتقول اهما يا سما
بصي وشوفي
وابقي قول لكل صوفي
وهو طالع لك طريق المعرفة اتغير
يوصل م السما للارض
لا يتوه ولا يحير
وشوفي الخلق وسط الموت تقابله وهي بتهزر
فيتلخبط ويتبعتر
وسر الدنيا يتفسر
ونعدلها ونوزنها

باقول يا مصر قومي وبصي في المرايات
في سما الولاد هم اللي عاملينها
بيشوفوا بعض في وش بعض
كأن انا انت وهو انا واحنا الكل
احنا ف مرايا بعض بنصبح صباح الفل
افدي بروحي كل واحد في المرايا طل
افدي الشهيد اللي بيتبسم
الفجر توب على قده متكسم
والله اعلم مين من الاتنين في صاحبه حل

افدي اللي سهران ع الخيم في الطل
وافدي اللي واقف يشتغل في الضل
وافدي اللي شايل للعناد اشارات
يهدي التاريخ صوب الميدان لو ضل
وافدي اللي واقف هاري نفسه كلام
وافدي اللي يتريق على الحكام
وافدي اللي رايح جاي ما بيتعبش
وافدي اللي جنبه حط فرشة ونام
وافدي طويل البال ما يتعصبش
وافدي المصاب اللي شوية وطاب
وافدي المصاب بهوى التراب وما طابش
وافدي اللي صاب البلطجي وما اتصابش
وافدي المقام العالي في التحرير
دولة بلا امرا وشعب امير

اعلم يا هذا الجيل ان الوطن بشره
لو مصر مالهاش نيل كان شعبها حفره
مش وصلوا بحرين وبنوا جبال اتنين
وف ظرف أسبوعين على خوفهم انتصروا

والخوف ده شىء معروف بيفرعن الحلوف
رزق الملوك الخوف من غيره يندثروا
رزق الملوك بقشيش من خوفنا شعب وجيش
ومفيش ملك بيعيش لو شعبك افتكره
ناس لسة فى العشرين نازلين على الميادين
بيهزأوا السلاطين من غير ما يعتذروا

يا شعب يا مجنون
علم شعوب الكون
اللي اخترع فرعون
قادر يجيب خبره

يا سادة الايام يا رافعين الهام
من بكرة بر الشام نادر لكم شجره
نادرها تين وزتون فى القدس ينتظرون
جيش ع الغلابة حنون وعلى العدى ضرره

دافعين تمنها دما
يا امة الكرما
شعبك كأنه سما
والدنيا دي مطره

يا مصر حمد الله ع السلامة
مطر ونازل بلا غمامة
مطر يا سيدي نازل وطالع
كأنه مدنا والارض جامع
والارض دي مظاهرة في الشوارع
تسقي السما جدعنة وشهامة
مطر وطالع يقول لربه
الامهات اللي في مصر ربوا
ويا بنات مصر قوموا حبوا
اجمل ما في الراجل الكرامة
مطر وطالع ع الفجر يدن
طلعت بنات مصر حلوة جدا
في الحرب والدنيا نار ومعدن
طايرة وشايلة السما اليمامة

خمسة وعشرين من شهر واحد
الفين وعشرة وزادوا واحد
كنا ملايين وكنا واحد
حددنا موعد يوم القيامة

قلت لصحابى انزلوا وانا بعيد عنهم
وقلت من بات فى بيته سلم اصحابه
وانا اللى غبت وهمه اللى هنا اتصابوا
نزلوا الشباب الميدان وانا بعيد عنهم
كسروا الشباب البيبان وانا بعيد عنهم
خرج الشباب م البيوت وأنا بعيد عنهم
دخل الشباب فى الموت وانا بعيد عنهم

يا موتى قوم امتحنى أعتذر منهم
اشمعنى يا كلب تستثنينى من بينهم
يوم الخطر قبلها ما كنت اجبنهم
يا موت تعالى اعوض غربتى ومنفاى
يا موت تعالى أحاسبك ع القديم والجاى
يا موت تعالى ونتقاسمك أنا وعداى
ولا تطال عزوتى وانا بعيد عنهم

لما تشوف الشهيد تبقى السلامة خجل
وتبقى عايز تقول له يا أخى آسف
طب قول لى بس اعمل ايه، لو يعنى فيها عمل
اللقمة دى لك نصيب فيها باشيلهولك
واشيل نصيبك من القاعدة وكاسات الشاى
لكن نصيبك فى أنفاسى أشيله إزاى
وازاى أشيللك نصيبك من فرحنا الجاى
ساعات ألاقينى باطلب خط محمولك
بعمل فى نفسى كده ليه، لسه مش عارف
وروح على القهوة أسأل، هو جه وسأل

من قال لك الموت طبيعى يبقى مش شايف
الموت ده شىء مش طبيعى الموت ده أصله خلل
الأصل فينا الخلود وهييجى يوم نلقاه
ما تحسبوش الشهيد اداكوا بس حياة
ما موتوش هو وحده اللى برصاصة رماه
ده طخ ابنه اللى لسه ما اتولدش معاه
وطخ أولاد ولاده لآخر الأيام
موت معاه بشرية كاملة محتملة
عدوا بقى فيها كام شاعر وكام رسام
وكام طبيب عبقرى بين الأطبة إمام
وفيلسوف له على حكم الليالى كلام
وبنت نظرتها تشفى القلب من داؤه
فى شعب كامل رحل ما عرفش أسماؤه
فيجسم كل شهيد فيه مصر مكتملة
فخلوا مصر اللى فاضلة تعيش كما شاؤوا

The Decision...

2011-12-12T20:34:00.000+02:00

Sometimes, things became unclear.. sometimes we get confused.. don't know which way to go.. then.. at such times.. we need to reset our goals & priorities to fit our ultimate purpose & vision..

The Photographer In Me! (2)

2011-12-04T12:10:00.000+02:00

One more time, but with some photo editing tricks ;)
I'm still a believer that an elegant photo doesn't any editing. However, some elegant touches wouldn't hurt :)

Enjoy :)

Ya El Medan - يا الميدان

2011-12-03T22:34:00.000+02:00

حكايات من دفتر الوطن

2011-11-30T17:22:00.000+02:00

# ... وبكيت... وكرهت حتى الموت لحظات الحصار، وامتهان الانسان لأنه يؤمن بشئ، أو يناصر ما يعتقد أنه الصواب، وكرهت كل محاولة لاجباره بالجوع أو القهر على أن يكون غير ما يريده لنفسه.

# ... وكنت قد توصلت إلى فرضية ليست خاطئة تماما: "ان عذاب مصر" الحقيقي، قد بدأ منذ حُصر العقل المصري في اطار المسلمات النهائية، التي لا تقبل المناقشة - وكان هدف الغزاة و الطغاة باستمرار أن يفقدوا هذا العقل قدرته على التفكير والحركة، لذلك ركزوا كل جهدهم على تحطيم حيويته، و تبديد قدراته الخارقة على الابتكار و الملاحة في البحار الصعبة. و كان اخطر ما فعلوه أن حولوا هذا العقل الى عقل يعرف جيدا علامات "التنصيص"، ويجهل علامات "الاستفهام" و "التعجب"، عقل يفتقد تدريجيا الى "الحاسة النقدية" التي تمكنه من تحطيم المحرمات التي تحول بينه وبين الثورة على واقعه و انتزاع مقدراته من أيدي الطغاة و الغزاة...

# رأس سليمان الحلبي - التى قطعوها بعد ذلك - كانت خالية من ذلك الذي يسمونه "احلام المجد". وكان هدفه عاريا عن أي تزويق أو تهويل أو أوهام بشرية. لذلك جاءت كلماته بسيطة، فهو لم يكم يملك خبرة كليبر الواسعة في وضع هالات العظمة حول ما يفعل، ومن المؤكد أنه كان خاليا تماما من أي احساس مريض بالذات، أو حرص على إبراز مظاهر العنجهية وسمات العظمة، كما كان غريمه القائد الالزاسي يفعل عادة. كان شابا تطهريا يرى المسائل فى مباشرتها و نقائها، ففعل ما فعل، لان "مراده أن يغازي - اي يجاهد - في سبيل الله" لا لشئ اكثر من ذلك..

والمواجة الدموية التي حدثت في "وراق العنب" - الذي اصبح الان شارعا تدوسه السابلة - بين "سليمان الحلبي" وبين "جان باتيست كليبر" تُصور على لسان مؤرخين كثيرين باعتبارها مواجهة بين رجل متعصب مصاب بهستيريا - او هلاوس - دينية، وبين قائد عظيم من ابناء حضارة الحرية والاخاء والمساوة، جاء لينشر العلم والعمران والتقدم في الوطن العربي الجاهل والمتخلف، ولينقله من القرون الوسطى الى العصر الحديث..

تلك بعض أكاذيب المؤرخين، وهى ليست قليلة، فلا احد يعرف - على وجه التحديد - أين تكمن الحضارة فى تاريخ الجينرال "جان باتيست كليبر"، و لا احد يستطيع أن يظبط ذلك الانتماء لمقولات الثورة الفرنسية فيما فعله - هو و سيده "بونابرت" - بأهل "القاهرة" و أهل "يافا" وأهل "رشيد"، وكل الذي نضبطه، هو المدافع والبنادق والبارود و المذابحو القسوة التى لاحد لها، وحفنة من الشعارات عن الحرية و الاخاء و المساواة، اعترف "بونابرت" - بعد ذلك في مذكراته التى كتبها فى منفاه بسانت هيلانه - بأنها كانت دجلا من اعلى طراز! (*)

من كتاب: حكايات من دفتر الوطن

للكاتب: صلاح عيسى

-----------------------
(*) عن نفسى، لست من مؤيدى "الحل عن طريق الاغتيالات"! ولكن - حسب ما فهمت - فان الكاتب ايضا "قد" يكون من الذين لا يؤيدون سياسة الاغتيالات! و تعليقه هذا على حادث اغتيال "كليبر" انما هو انتقاد لما "ادعاه" المؤرخون عن كلا من "الحلبي" و "كليبر" و اهداف الحملة الفرنسية "النبيلة"!! ايضا، استطعت ان استشف ما اراد الكاتب ان يوصله من تحليل ضمنى لدوافع "الحلبي" لقتل "كليبر"! وكيف كان الظلم جليا للحلبي، فاتخذ من دوره موقفا. في حين تاه الكثيرون - ممن يحسبون من ذو الرأي و العلم و التقى - في حسابات ما قد يلاقونه من مواجهة الظلم بكلمة الحق!! على اي حال، هو تحليل جيد جدا كتب باسلوب اكثر من ممتع!

Everything You Do Says Something About You

2011-11-24T11:49:00.000+02:00

I liked this paragraph of "Designing the Obvious - A Common Sense Approach to Web and Mobile Application Design" book! So, I liked to share it here.

What you do is evidence of why you do it. Everything you do says something about you. Buying a moderately priced, used sedan says something different about you than buying a flashy red sports car. Store-brand lemonade says something different about you than gourmet, organic lemonade. A Saturday night at home with the dogs says something different than one spent at a downtown bar. People aren’t random. They are the results of their own lives. You tell your story with every move and every decision. The books on your bookshelf, the rug on your floor, the food in your refrigerator, the car in your driveway, the shirt on your back—they all say something about you, your circumstances, the way you think, what you value, what you believe. People don’t buy products. They buy their own identities. We are photographs of our own truths.

References:
Robert Hoekman Jr., Designing the Obvious - A Common Sense Approach to Web and Mobile Application Design, Second Edition

Islam: Empire of Faith - Documentary (2)

2011-11-13T15:16:00.000+02:00

Part 2: The Awakening

Part 3: The Ottomans

What the Ancients Did for Us: The Islamic World

2011-11-10T11:19:00.000+02:00

This such a great documentary. Really loved it a lot :)

"The first What The Ancients Did For Us programme explores the Muslim contribution to the western world - in art, architecture, astronomy, medicine, science, and learning.

The early Muslims are credited with inventing distillation and could distil just about anything - from alcohol to perfume. Hygiene is very important in the Muslim world so they invented and manufactured soap - centuries before the West - and hundreds of bathhouses were built throughout Muslim cities. They understood the fundamentals of light and how we see, and gave us the camera obscura. They invented algebra and worked out the angle of the tilt of the earth. They built the first windmill, pioneered the concept of the crank rod, and designed the first ever torpedo. Muslim creativity also led to the invention of a unique instrument called the astrolabe – it could find the direction of Mecca, tell the time and, with the help of the stars, navigate you across deserts and oceans. But perhaps most important of all they pursued the cause of knowledge, translating and preserving the works of the ancients and building the world's largest libraries – their 'houses of wisdom'." (Excerpt from open2.net)

Just Listen

2011-11-09T13:00:00.000+02:00

Well, don't know why this book just flow over my head!! But I liked few quotes of it, that I'll share them here. Enjoy! :)

Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them. - Paul Hawken, author, Natural Capitalism.

If you want to open the lines of communication, open your own mind first.

Everyone has an invisible sign hanging from their neck saying, "Make me feel important." - Mary Kay Ash, founder, Mary Kay Cosmatics, inc.

The most successful people are those who don't have any illusions about who they are. - Bud Bray, author, Is It Too Late To Run Away And Join The Circus?

When you're cornered and everything inside you makes you feel like baring your teeth, reach deeper into yourself, feel your fear, and bare your neck instead.

Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done. - Louis D. Brandeis, 20th-Century Supreme Court Justice

Do the unexpected. The expected is boring. The unexpected is tuned out. - Steve Strauss, author, The Small Business Bible

Great anger is more destructive than the sword. - Indian Proverb.

Before you worry about solving someone else's problem, find out if there really is a problem.

Don't get defensive; go deeper.

When you can't get through face to face, try side by side.

Direct questions make people think you're talking at them. Let them fill in the blanks, and they'll feel you're talking with them.

the more often you say and sincerely mean "thank you", the less you need to pay your people. The more often you say and sincerely mean "I'm sorry", the quicker your people will get back to work.

The secret of getting ahead is getting started. - Agatha Christie, mystery author.

Visualize yourself in the job that you want; then actively plan to get there.

Focus on "what's in it for them?"and reciprocators will sooner or later ask, "What can I do for you?". Focus on "What's in it for me?" and they'll ask themselves, "How do I get away from this person?".

During tough times, say unto yourself what those who care about you would say unto you.. and then believe it. Otherwise, you are dishonoring the love they feel for you.

Islam: Empire of Faith - Documentary

2011-10-29T21:25:00.000+02:00

I was looking for this movie since a while, & finally I watched it!
I liked it, the efforts put in it are unquestionable indeed! However, I have few comments:

# Gabriel -peace be upon him- revealed to prophet Muhammad -PBUH- as an angel, at their first time. Not as a human, as the film says! Appearing as an angel was intend to make Muhammad -PBUH- realize that his facing a very huge & serious matter.

# The Quraan wasn't written by the early time at Makkah. Few Muslims did wrote few scripts of it. But, not all of it. Most people back then were illiterate! They can't read or write. But they were very good in memorizing anything.

# There was no caravan while Hijra!!! They were so scared & threaten, so they traveled in very small groups (individuals most of the time) secretly! The only one who traveled in a mid-day sunlight was Omar Ibn El-Khatab.

# Prophet Muhammad -PBUH- didn't name the city after his name! But it was named, "Al-Madeana Al-Monawara" or "The Lighted City". People, afterwords, used to refer it to the City of the Prophet, as in reference to his -PBUH- there.

# Prayers were not at Prophet's house!! they were at the Prophet's mosque! And it was people who named the mosque "The Prophet's Mosque". By the mosque's wall,, the prophet built houses (rooms would be the accurate word to describe them) to each one of his -PBUH- wifes.

# I don't know why on earth at every movie I've seen, so far, there's a LOT of spaces between people while they pray!!!! Can't the producers ask how Muslims pray in groups?!! Or, can't they just make use of some Muslims (who really know how to pray in groups) to act correctly in such scenes?!!

# The motive of The Battle of Bard wasn't as it sound here! .That the best who I found explaining it, was Dr. Amr Khaled, here: http://youtu.be/gMFzhb9QWRI.

# The final scene of the Prophet's -PBUH- funeral. I don't know how this could be! Faces slapping, screaming, dancing, throwing sands on the air, & drums?!! At the Prophet's funeral?!! And by the Prophet's companions?!!! That's TOTALLY an imaginary, fiction, fancy, lunatic scene! All those stuff are totally forbidden by the Islamic teaching to be done at a funeral.

# One more last note, I don't know much about the Niqab history, however, that women custom at the movie is much bridle thank a Niqab!!!

Finally, well, hope you enjoy the movie, specially after what I've said about it :D

A Break For A While! :)

2011-10-26T11:18:00.000+02:00

Having a break for a while & enjoying a special playlist of Yusuf Islam :)

An Islamic History of Europe - Documentary

2011-10-22T22:58:00.000+02:00

An interesting history of Islam in Europe.

Produced by the BBC.

The Photographer In Me!

2011-10-08T11:47:00.000+02:00

Well, I've realized recently my admiration for photographing. I think it's back to May 2011. I don't know how, or why?! But, since then, I decided to record each good momet that really worth recording..

Yesterday, I went to the Citadel for a photographing session. This is the first time to go somewhere just for taking pictures. In addition, this was my first time to visit the Citadel as well!! :)

Here's my output.. Enjoy! :)

مصر من تاني

2011-10-01T05:42:00.003+02:00

.. واذا كان الشئ بالشئ يذكر، فإن هجوم صلاح الدين على معاقل الحشاشين كان خطأ فادحا. فلم يكن الحشاشون فرقة بقدر ما كانوا فكرة، ولو قضي صلاح الدين على هؤلاء الحشاشين اللذين هاجمهم لظهر حشاشون كثيرون بعد ذلك. ولكن الخطوة التي فعلها صلاح الدين بعد ذلك كانت الحل الوحيد للقضاء على مشكلة الحشاشين. وهذه الخطوة هي بناء جيش قوي من أبناء مصر، مطعم بفرق عربية، وعلى رأس الجيش قادة مدربون على الحرب وقادرون عليها. وعندما بدأ زحف صلاح الدين من القاهرة أخذ وقتا طويلا، ولكنه لم يتوقف إلا في القدس، وعندما دخل القدس وصلى مع جنوده في المسجد الاقصى، كانت هذه هي بداية النهاية لدولة الحشاشين.

لقد ظهر الحشاشون في عصر الانحطاط. وعلا نجمهم في زمن الهزيمة، فاصبحت كلمتهم هي العليا في أيام الانكسار، وكانت الأسباب التي قامت فرقتهم على أساسها أن الأمة في حالة إنهيار، والنظم العربية في حالة استسلام، وإنهاء سبب الهزيمة وزوالها يؤدي إلى تحقيق النصر. ولكن ها هو الصلاح الدين يقلب الموازين، وها هو جيشه العظيم يزحف من القاهرة فيفتح القلاع، وتسقط في يده المدن، وها هم الاسرى الصليبين بالألوف مقيدون بالأغلال يتهادى موكبهم في شوارع دمشق والقاهرة، وها هي أعلام النصر ترفرف من جديد. وها هي الروح تعود إلى الأمة الميتة، والنبض يعود إلى الشارع العربي الذي كان قد تعفن، وفاحت رائحته منذ زمن بعيد.

لقد ضرب صلاح الدين الفكرة في الصميم، وانزوى الحشاشون بعدها في مناطقهم، وفقدوا بريقهم السابق، ولم يعد يهتم بهم أحد، أو يخشاهم أحد.

وتآكلت فرقة الحشاشين طوال العهد الأيوبي، فلما قامت المماليك، كان من السهل على الملك الظاهر بيبرس كسر شوكتهم والقضاء علي دولتهم وسحقهم حتى العظام. ولكن الحشاشين الذين حاربهمم بيبرس وقضى عليهم، لم يكونوا هم أنفسهم الحشاشين الذين كانوا يحتلون الساحة قبل مجئ صلاح الدين، أو بمعنى أصح قبل انتصاره.

كانوا مجموعة من الأرزقية، أشبه بأعضاء حزب الكهرباء هذه الأيام. لقد أفقدهم الانتصار أسباب دعوتهم وأسباب قوتهم، وكان وجود الصليبين في بلاد العرب، وأخذ الجزية منهم، وإذلالهم على مرأى ومسمع من حكامهمم هو السبب الذي جعل الحشاشين في أعلى مكان. أما الان، فقد انتهى أمرهم، وكان القضاء عليهم تحصيل حاصل. ونجحت أول حملة قادها الظاهر بيبرس في القضاء عليهم، ولم تنجح مئات الحملات التي شنها ضدهم حكام الأمس وإمارات ما قبل الانتصار.

وما أشبه الليلة بالبارحة، لعل السبب في انتشار الفرق المتطرفة الآن، هو هزيمة الأمة كلها على يد ثلاثة ملايين كلب يهودي استطاعوا انتزاع فلسطين وهضبة الجولان. ولذلك فأي حرب ضدهم لن تجدي مادام صلاح الدين لم يظهر بعد، وما دامت الأمة في حالة إنهيار، وبعضها يبحث عن حل وسط على موائد المفاوضات.

والأمم تأكل نفسها إذا لم تسطع أن تأكل أعدائها. وهذه الفرق المتطرفة لا تظهر إلا في زمن العجز، وفي عصور الضعف، وعندما يصاب الناس بالوهن. قيل: وما الوهن يا رسول الله؟ قال: "حب الدنيا وكراهية الموت".

إنها حالة تتكرر كثيرا، وليس من سبيل للخروج منها إلا عن طريق واحد. وإذا أردت أن تعرف الحل، فاقرأ هذه السطور من تاني!

من كتب: مصر من تاني

للكاتب: محمود السعدني

اصدار: دار الشروق

2Km - 2كم

2011-09-22T11:02:00.001+02:00

كَثِــيرُ حَيــاةِ المَـرْءِ مِثْـلُ قَلِيلِهـا يَــزُولُ وبـاقي عَيشِـهِ مِثْـلُ ذاهب

فــرُبَّ كَــئِيبٍ لَيسَ تَنـدَى جُفونُـهُ ورُبَّ نَــدِيِّ الجَــفنِ غــيرُ كَـئِيبِ

وفـي تَعـبٍ مَـن يَحسُدُ الشَمسَ نُورَها ويَجــهَدُ أَنْ يَــأتي لَهــا بِضَـرِيبِ

وَمَن صَحِبَ الدُنيا طَويلاً تَقَلَّبَت عَلى عَينِهِ حَتّى يَرى صِدقَها كِذبا

A Tale Of Two Friends (2)

2011-08-27T20:12:00.000+02:00

Definition: The one true friend is the one that while you are in the middle of your talk, takes a picture of you. You ask surprisingly: "What's that for?!!!". He answers: "Your eyes are so glowing!"; & You find yourself saying: "I never knew that my eyes glow!!!!!".

تعريف: الصديق الي بجد هو الشخص اللي في عز اندماجك في الكلام، تلاقيه بيصورك، فتسأله بستغراب: "دا بمبناسبة ايه؟!!!" فيرد: "بمناسبة ان عينيك بتلمع قوي وانت بتتكلم". فتلاقيك بتقول لنفسك: "عمري معرفت ان عيني بتلمع قبل كدا!!!!"

Where Then Are You Going?! - Imam Zaid Shakir

2011-08-26T05:05:00.000+02:00

Uplifting talk by Imam Zaid Shakir at RIS - Reviving the Islamic Spirit.. Take 12 min of your time and try to listen to it.. I hope you find the talk beneficial..

The Source Lyrics - Sami Yusuf

2011-08-15T04:32:00.002+02:00

You are the Source of all power

My need in my darkest hour

My Lord

Your Face and Light all I seek

Nothing more I'd ever want or need

My Lord

Protect me from dishonour

Grant me faith to be stronger

My Lord

ذو الجلال و الإكرام، سيد الأكوان، هو المنان

إن لي رب عظيم، ليس مثله إله، هو الرحمن

(The most Majestic and most Bountiful, Master of the Universe, the Most Gracious.

My Lord is truly Great, none can compare to Him, He is the Most Merciful.)

You are the Source of all Mercy

Infinite Light for all to see

My Lord

Some claim to represent You

But everything they do is so far away from You

My Lord

Help us to know You better

Help us love one another

My Lord

كم يعاني قلبي،

لكن معي ربي

إلهي، رحمن

أنت نور الأمان

(How much my heart suffers,

But my Lord is with me,

My Lord, the Source of Mercy

You are the Light of Safety)

I know some doors You may close

But this is how life's story goes

You are my Guide the Source of Light

My Lord

Artist: Sami Yusuf
Published by Resonance Music
Label: ETM International
Written, composed and produced by Sami Yusuf

آيات تخاطبنا

2011-08-08T23:47:00.000+02:00

الآية الأولى هى قول الحق سبحانه: « وَقُلْ رَبِّ زِدْنِى عِلْما» (طه، 114) وهى آية تبدو كمحصلة لمجموعة من الآيات الأخرى التى تأخذ شكل نظرية مترابطة، تحملنا مسئولية البحث عن العلم والاشتغال به على النحو التالى:

وما أوتيتم من العلم إلا قليلا + وفوق كل ذى علم عليم + هل يستوى الذين يعلمون والذين لا يعلمون + يرفع الله الذين امنوا منكم والذين أوتوا العلم درجات = وقل ربى زدنى علما.
ولتطبيق هذه المعادلة القرآنية على أرض الواقع يأتى قول الرسول الكريم: «طلب العلم فريضة» و«لايزال المرء عالما ما طلب العلم، حتى إذا قال علمت فقد جهل».

الآية الثانية تقول: «رَبَّنَا لا تَجْعَلْنَا فِتْنَةً لِلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا» (الممتحنة، 5) وهو دعاء يحمل فى طياته المعنى التالى، كما قال به ابن عاشور: أى يا رب لا تجعلنا دليلا يتخذه الكافرون على صدق كفرهم وكذب إيماننا فنكون سببا فى تحول الناس عن دينك لأنهم ما عرفوه إلا لأنهم عرفونا، فبدلا من أن نكون هداة مهتدين نكون ضالين مضلين.

تذكرت هذه الآية عندما قرأت كلام الشيخ محمد الغزالى: «إن المسلمين جدار سميك بين العالمين ودينهم». أى أن المسلمين، بسوء سلوكهم يقفون حائلا بين تعرف غير المسلمين على صحيح الإسلام. تذكرت هذه الآية وأنا أجمع المادة العلمية لكتابى عن المسلمين والديمقراطية لتكون المفاجأة أن ثمانين بالمائة من المسجونين السياسيين فى العالم (أى بسبب آرائهم السياسية) مسلمون، وأن الدول العربية تحديدا مسئولة عن أكثر من خمسين بالمائة من النظم غير الديمقراطية فى العالم. فلو أراد أحد ساكنى المريخ أن يتخير دينا من ديانات الأرض بالنظر فقط إلى أحوال أتباع كل دين، فأغلب الظن أنه لن يختار الإسلام. ربنا لا تجعلنا فتنة للذين كفروا.

تذكرت هذه الآية الكريمة أثناء حوارى مع طالب دكتوراه من اليابان طلب منى أن أقرأ جزءا من رسالته فروى لى بعض ما واجهه من صعاب أثناء زيارته لبعض الدول العربية وكيف أنه خرج بانطباع سلبى عن الإسلام (وكان الأحرى أن يحصر انطباعه فى حدود العرب) بما انعكس بوضوح فى رسالته. وكان مطلوبا منى أن أقول له إن الإسلام عظيم وأغلب المسلمين لا يتصرفون بوحى منه، وأن اعتزازهم به لا يعنى التزامهم بآدابه ولكن هيهات: وكأن لسان حاله يقول إذا لم يكن الإسلام قد نفع المسلمين فى شىء فكيف ينفع الآخرين؛ فكيف يستقيم الظل والعود أعوج.

الآية الثالثة تقول: «وَاصْبِرْ نَفْسَكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ رَبَّهُمْ بِالْغَدَاةِ وَالْعَشِيِّ يُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَهُ وَلَا تَعْدُ عَيْنَاكَ عَنْهُمْ تُرِيدُ زِينَةَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَلَا تُطِعْ مَنْ أَغْفَلْنَا قَلْبَهُ عَنْ ذِكْرِنَا وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ وَكَانَ أَمْرُهُ فُرُطا» (الكهف، 28). والآية ترسم منهجا يضعه الخالق لرسوله ولعباده من بعده بأن فرّق بين منهجين فى الحياة وفريقين يسيران على نهجهما: الأول هو منهج من جعل نفسه وحياته ومماته لله يدعوه ويذكره ويعمل له ويخشاه ليلا ونهارا لأنه يريد وجهه سبحانه ولا شىء سواه، لكن المهم ألا تذهب عيناك بعيدا عن هؤلاء لأنهم عادة قليلون ومتع الحياة الفانية غالبا ليست عندهم وإنما عند من أساء وأخطأ وتعمد الخطأ حتى أغفل الله قلبه عن ذكره واتبع هواه فأصبح أمره فرطا، وهم أصحاب المنهج الثانى. هى آية تحتاج الكثير من التأمل كى نحسن فهمها ونعمل بهديها. اللهم اجعلنا ممن يستمعون القول فيتبعون أحسنه.

مقالة د. معتز بالله عبد الفتاح في جريدة الشروق بتاريخ 7 اغسطس 2011

http://www.shorouknews.com/Columns/Column.aspx?id=519430

يا ولـــدي - فرقة جين

2011-08-07T20:29:00.000+02:00

قدْ أُرْمَى خَلْفَ الجُدرانِ

وتحِنُّ لِحُبِّي وحَنَانِي

فانْظُرْ في قَلْبِكَ سَتَرانِي

لَنْ يَقْوَى القَيْدُ على الفِكْر...ِ

سأضُمُّكَ والصَدْرُ جَرِيحُ

وسأعْشَقُ والقَلْبُ ذَبِيحُ

مهما عَصَفتْ ضِدِّي الريحُ

لَنْ أَحْنِيَ في يوْمٍ ظَهْرِي.

جدد حياتك - 2

2011-08-06T05:57:00.000+02:00

عيش في حدود يومك

من أخطاء الانسان أن ينوء في حاضره بأعباء مستقبله الطويل.

لماذا تخامرك الريبة ويخالجك القلق؟! عش في حدود يومك، فذلك أجدر بك، وأصلح لك.

والعيش في حدود اليوم يتسق مع قول الرسول - صلى الله عليه وسلم - : "من أصبح آمنا في سربه، معافى في بدنه، عنده قوت يومه، فكأنما حيزت له الدنيا بحذافيراها". إنك تملك العالم كله يوم تجمع هذه العناصر كلها في يديك فاحذر أن تحقرها.

إن الأمان والعافية وكفاية يوم واحد قوى تتيح للعقل النير أن يفكر في هدوء واستقامة تفكيرا قد يغير به مجرى التاريخ كله، بله حياة فرد واحد.

وبعض الناس يستهين بما أولاه الله من سلامة وطمأنينة في نفسه وأهله، وقد يزدري هذه الآلاء العظيمة، ويضخم آثار الحرمان من حظوظ الثروة ولبتمكين. وهذه الاستهانة غَمط للواقع ومتلفة للدين والدنيا.

إن الاكتفاء الذاتي، وحسن استغلال ما في اليد، ونبذ الاتكال على المُنى هي نواة العظمة النفسية وسر الانتصار على الظروف المُعنتة.

والذين لا يشكون الحرمان - لأنهم أوتوا الكثير - قلما ينتفعون بما أوتوا إذا هم فقدوا الطاقة النفسية على استغلال ما معهم والإفادة مما حولهم. هذه حقيقة يؤكدها النبي الكريم مطلع كل صباح فيقول: "ما طلعت شمس قط إلا بعث بجنبتيها ملكان يُسمعان أهل الارض إلا الثقلين: يا أيها الناس، هلموا إلي ربكم، فإن ما قل وكفى خير مما كثر وألهى. ولا غربت شمس قط، إلا وبعث بجنبيها ملكان يناديان: اللهم عجل لمنفق خلفا وغجل لممسك تلفا".

على أن العيش في حدود اليوم لا يعني تجاهل المستقبل، أو ترك الإعداد له، فإن اهتمام المرء بغده وتفكيره فيه حصافة وعقل.

وهناك فرق بين الاهتمام بالمستقبل والاغتمام به، بين الاستعداد له والاستغراق فيه، بين التيقظ في استغلال اليوم الحاضر وبين التوجس المربك المحير مما قد يفد به الغد.

من كتاب: جدد حياتك

للامام: محمد الغزالي

A Tale Of Two Friends

2011-08-05T21:22:00.000+02:00

Once upon a time..
There was two friends (*)..

(*) I'll let it to your imagination to figure out that story of the two freinds. I'd like to know it, if you wish ;)

& For my friend, & my friends.. May Allah bless our friendship for eternity :)

جدد حياتك

2011-07-15T12:27:00.000+02:00

جدد حياتك

الرجل المقبل على الدنيا بعزيمة وصبر، لا تخضعه الظروف المحيطة به مهما ساءت، ولا تصرفه وفق هواها. إنه هو الذي يستفيد منها، ويحتفظ بخصائصه أمامها.

الحاضر القريب الماثل بين يديك، ونفسك التي بين جنبيك، والظروف الباسمة أو الكاحلة التي تلتف حواليك، هي وحدها الدعائم التي يتمخض عنها مستقبلك. فلا مكان للإبطاء أو انتظار، قال رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - : "إن الله يبسط يده بالليل ليتوب مسئ النهار، ويبسط يده بالنهار ليتوب مسئ الليل".

ثم إن كل تأخير لإنقاذ منهج تجدد به حياتك، وتصلح به أعمالك لا يعنى لإ إطالة الفترة الكابية التي تبغى الخلاص منها، وبقاءك مهزوما أمام نوازع الهوى والتفريط.

ما أجمل أن يعيد الإنسان تنظيم نفسه بين الحين و الحين، و أن يرسل نظرات ناقدة في جوانبها ليتعرف عيوبها و آفاتها، و أن يرسم السياسات القصيرة المدى، و الطويلة المدى، ليتخلص من الهنات التي تزري به.

ألا تستحق النفس بعد كل مرحلة تقطعها من الحياة أن نعيد النظر فيما أصابها من غُنم أو غُرم؟ وأن نرجع إليها توازنها واعتدالها كلما رجتها الأزمات، وهزها العراك الدائب على ظهر الأرض في تلك الدنيا المائجة.

لا أدري لماذا لا يطير العباد إلى ربِّهم على أجنحةٍ من الشوق بدل أن يُساقوا إليه بسياط من الرهبة ؟! إنَّ الجهل بالله وبدينه هو عِلَّةُ هذا الشعور البارد، أو هذا الشعور النافر - بالتعبير الصحيح - ؛ مع أنَّ البشر لن يجدوا أبرَّ بهم ولا أحنَى عليهم من الله عز وجل.

من كتاب: جدد حياتك

للامام: محمد الغزالي

اصدار: دار نهضة مصر للنشر

TEDxCairo - Fadel Soliman - Bread and Salt

2011-06-23T15:52:00.002+02:00

Mr.Fadel Soliman speaks in TEDxCairo Resurrection 2011 about the Egyptian community and his idea for a better living between Muslims and Christians in Egypt

لا سياسة في الدين و لا دين في السياسة صح ام خطأ

2011-06-22T18:01:00.003+02:00

عندما توضع الكلمات في موضعها الصحيح ، وبمعناها الاصلي، تصبح الرؤية أوضح و أسهل!!

Jihad on Terrorism

2011-05-06T22:48:00.003+02:00

"Jihad on Terrorism" is the title of a documentary movie produced by Bridges Foundation, to be part II of its "The Fog Is Lifting" series; after part I, "Islam in Brief" movie.

I've watched the full movie, and it's really one of those movies that changed a lot of my thoughts & information; specially that part about the terrorism history, and that not all terrorists are Muslims, and much more.

I'd recommend this move to anyone interested to know more about Terrorism & Jihad.

Update (On June, 1st, 2011):

I found this article reviewing the film. It's really an excellent film review. Check it here: http://www.onislam.net/english/reading-islam/research-studies/reviews-a-interviews/452161-jihad-on-terrorism-film-review.html

Favorite Movies Quotes (4)

2011-04-22T15:08:00.003+02:00

The Pursuit of Happyness

Hey. Don't ever let somebody tell you... You can't do something. Not even me. All right? You got a dream... You gotta protect it. People can't do somethin' themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want somethin', go get it. Christopher Gardner

Hey dad, you wanna hear something funny? There was a man who was drowning, and a boat came, and the man on the boat said "Do you need help?" and the man said "God will save me". Then another boat came and he tried to help him, but he said "God will save me", then he drowned and went to Heaven. Then the man told God, "God, why didn't you save me?" and God said "I sent you two boats, you dummy!". Christopher

********

Dinosaur

Some things start out big, and some things start out small, very small. But sometimes the smallest thing can make the biggest changes of all. Plio

Aladar: We're not meant to survive.
Baylene: Oh, yes we were! We're HERE, aren't we? And how DARE you waste that good fortune by simply giving up? Shame on you. Shame on you! SHAME on you! The worst of it is, you allowed an old fool like me to believe I was needed... that I still had a purpose... and do you know what? You were right. And I'm going to go on believing it. And I, for one, am not going to die here!

None of knows what changes, big or small, lie ahead. One thing is certain - our journey's not over. We can only hope that in some small way our time here will be remembered. Plio

*********

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Everything happens for a reason. Klaus Baudelaire

There's always something. Violet Baudelaire

Not Of Islam!!

2011-02-26T13:13:00.004+02:00

Been reading recently "Not Out Of Islam" by Shaikh Mohammad El-Ghazaly. I'd comment here about a quote that I really loved:

ولنعلم أن الشخص الذي يسير في الحياة مسلوب الإرادة، ميت الفكر - لا لشئ، إلا لأن قدميه تخطوان في طريق مهدها الأقدمون - هو شخص ناء بفكره و إرادته عن الإسلام

Be aware of that person, who lives in life with neither a will, nor intellect - because of nothing but his foot are just following the ancients ways - he's outlying his own will and intellect from Islam!

The shaikh supports his idea by those verses from the Quraan:

"إِنَّہُمۡ أَلۡفَوۡاْ ءَابَآءَهُمۡ ضَآلِّينَ (٦٩) فَهُمۡ عَلَىٰٓ ءَاثَـٰرِهِمۡ يُہۡرَعُونَ (٧٠) وَلَقَدۡ ضَلَّ قَبۡلَهُمۡ أَڪۡثَرُ ٱلۡأَوَّلِينَ (٧١) وَلَقَدۡ أَرۡسَلۡنَا فِيہِم مُّنذِرِينَ (٧٢) فَٱنظُرۡ ڪَيۡفَ كَانَ عَـٰقِبَةُ ٱلۡمُنذَرِينَ (٧٣) إِلَّا عِبَادَ ٱللَّهِ ٱلۡمُخۡلَصِينَ (٧٤)" - الصافات

"They indeed found their fathers astray, (69) But they make haste (to follow) in their footsteps. (70) And verily most of the men of old went astray before them, (71) And verily We sent among them warners. (72) Then see the nature of the consequence for those warned, (73) Except the faithful servants of God (Allah) (74)" - Al-Ssaaffat

Well, by the end of 2010, and beginning of 2011, I was thinking, how possibly we're approaching the second decade of the 21 century, and there still ALL this ignorance & illiteracy in our world!!! Can't believe the number of fetal and horrible crimes committed by the name of Freedom, Democracy, and Religion!!

I don't (and won't) claim that I do have a solution. I really don't know what the possible solution is! However, questioning the basics, listening carefully, reading, analyzing, and thinking in different directions sometimes help a LOT!

Shaikh Hamza Yusuf explains what I mean here - specially the first minute of this video.

Revolution In Egypt!!! (6)

2011-02-17T17:26:00.002+02:00

From Nightmares to Dreams :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_Revolution_of_2011

Revolution In Egypt!!! (6)

2011-02-11T21:04:00.000+02:00

WE WON!

February, 11, 2011

The day with no word to describe..

The day Egypt won

"First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win."..

WE WON.. WE WON.. WE WOOOOOOOONNN!!!

Thank You Allah..

************

I'm Your Hope

You are the hope for our globe

Don't give up nor despair

There's nothing you can't repair

You can change this world to a better world

With your souls, with your souls

Do not harm me, I am your truth

Do not kill me, for I'm your youth

I am your hope, I am your truth

I'm your faith, I'm your youth

بالقول والعمل ، أنتم الأمل

(With words and action, You are the hope)

سلمهم يارب، سلمهم يارب

(Grant them peace Oh Lord, grant them peace Oh Lord)

بالعلم والقلم ، يدفع الألم

(Through knowledge and the might of the pen, Pain will be pushed aside)

لا تنسني أنا ضميرك ، لا تؤذني أنا شبابك

(Don't forget me for I'm your conscience, Don't harm me I'm your youth)

Composed and produced by: Sami Yusuf

Lyrics by: Dr. Walid A. Fitaihi

Revolution In Egypt!!! (5)

2011-02-08T12:35:00.000+02:00

We Are One!

Revolution In Egypt!!! (4)

2011-02-07T00:21:00.000+02:00

Time To Sing :)

إزاي؟!

محمد منير

***********************

احلم معايا

حمزة نمرة

Revolution In Egypt!!! (3)

2011-02-05T21:38:00.002+02:00

A Look From Outside..

Since the day one.. No!.. Since minute one, the ex-government keep saying, "It's all a plot managed by the Muslims Brotherhood".. Well, I understand how hard it is to them to understand that NO ONE believe in their lies but them!!

Revolution In Egypt!!! (2)

2011-02-04T23:15:00.004+02:00

Dreams Of Revolution

I knew it! Everyone knew it! How it was before, won't be now, and forever!

Everything has changed now.. No more fear.. No more humiliation.. No more lies.. No more oppression.. Can't imagine that after all what we have been through this week, any single Egyptian will be afraid to say "NO!".. To be a corrupter, or pay for a corrupter.. To be positive.. and even proactive!

Loved a word that says:

الناس من خوف الذل في ذل، ومن خوف الفقر في فقر!!

People, from the fear of humiliation, are in humiliation; and from the fear of poverty, are in poverty!!

Maybe those who above 35s will find it a bit difficult to cope with that new atmosphere. But the very best is that the new generations will have much better chances :)

Won't pretend that I'm a super brave person. Most of the time I was really scared. I witnessed one of the most dreadful nights ever in my life. I now know how exactly the people in Gaza feel!!

One of those strange stuffs happened, is that almost all of my fiends (even Non-Egyptian & Non-Muslim) told me the same thing.. To "Have faith.. As it's really not controlled by us, we turn to Him, The Savior, The Preserver ".

O Allah, Show us the truth, and give us the strength to follow it..

Revolution In Egypt!!!

2011-02-04T01:39:00.002+02:00

Chronicle Of Revolution

Since the beginning of this week, I'm trying to understand, analyze, and understand what's going on! No one ever ever imaged that what happened will ever happen!! Many times tried to write down what I'm feeling.. But I couldn't!

Well, my friend Aya helped a lot by forwarding me an e-mail from Prof. Mohammed El-Beltagy, a professor of Operations Research at our faculty. He just described what I'm feeling, and what thousands of thousands Egyptians are also feeling Now.

Special thanks for Dr. El-Beltagy for his generous to let me post it here :)

Recent events that have been going on Egypt have thrown many experts of-guard. People are still struggling to understand what is really happening. Even those how are now participating in it have difficulty articulating what this Revolution is about. What I endeavor to do here is but a humble attempt to shed some light on what it means and the events surrounding it.

One thing for sure, this revolution can not be summed up as being about the Muslim Brotherhood, economic justice, or political freedom. Something far more profound is going on. Something that I dare to say is wholly unprecedented in the history of Egypt and perhaps the history of the world.

It all started few weeks prior to the 25th of January, when I received a facebook event invitation from my younger cousin for a day of “revolution”. I though it silly and that those are organizing such events have no clue what revolutions are about. Little did I know.

In their deceleration of demands the “revolutionaries” asked for: setting up and implementing standards for minimum wage (they even declared that is should be EGP 1200 [about $210] per month), revoking the emergency law (Egypt has been in state of emergency for the past 30 years, and under that law anyone can be incarcerated without cause), and firing the police chief (a man notorious for his brutality and ultimately responsible for torture, injustice, and cover-ups).

Although I full heartily agreed with the last two demands, I found there first demand as very revealing of their naiveté. To my mind such minimum levels of income should be first studied by able economist, who would gauge their impact on the economy and see if such a level is feasible. I dismissed it as plan silly, and warned my cousin not to attend. I lectured him on the difference between a revolution and a demonstration and warned that large gatherings are potentially dangerous. My biggest fear at the time was that the Muslim Brotherhood might exploit to it to do something very damaging to stability and security of the country and that violence may ensue. I was very fearful for their safety.

A miracle happened on the January 25th that shook me very profoundly. Coming from an upper class background with plenty of “connections” to the rich and powerful, being well traveled with many friends Europe and United Sates, and with a relatively secular outlook, I was living in one of many cultural bubbles that have come to characterize Egyptian society in recent year. That social and culture fragmentation has been picking up pace recently and seemed congruent with economic growth. Suddenly all of these bubbles were burst and the barriers were removed. A certain bond was realized, a bound that must have been always there but we didn't know it.

We were experiencing ourselves for first time as Egyptians. That nature of that bond can not be put in rational terms, whatever I say now it is but a poor attempt to describe the feeling that I had.
There was a birth of new realization that Egypt is much more than our country of residence, or a national soccer team that we cheer for in international events. Egypt is being resurrected again through us, Egypt is now experienced as a living being, and we are but elements in it's living consciousness. The spirit of Egypt lives and we are part of it.

This is something that I felt through what my cousins relayed to me and many others who took part in the demonstration. That spirit wants to be free, it wants to grow and break the shackles of tyranny. For the first time people from all walks of life were discovering profound sympathy and love for each other. The Marxist was feeling a strong bond with the Islamist, the intellectual with the poor illiterate, and the millionaire to the pauper. There were no culture wars, the fragmentation and distance was no more.

That spirit was making its presence felt and the consciousness was still struggling with a language to express itself. What started out as a “revolution” on facebook turned out to be a Revolution of the spirit of the land, with no ideology or definite leadership.

Having felt glimpses of that, I wanted to taste and experience it first hand and I went out on the January 28 demonstration. I saw people from all walks of life and different age groups marching together. I saw whole families walk together in a festive atmosphere. That was until we encountered the vicious security forces, who were adamant on dispersing the rally.

We braved a barrage of rubber bullets under a cloud of tear gas, the police didn't show the slightest hint of concern for our safety. Although the demonstrators would cry out “selmia” (meaning we are “peaceful”), the security forces would fire rubber bullets on the protesters. I have saw many youth and even an old lady with ghastly head wounds.

I witnessed fear and panic, but for the most part the protesters kept driving forward. That courage was a thing of beauty, they are crying out for freedom from tyranny, they were reaching out to hope and their determination was solid.

Much later on that day one of the largest state security apparatus in the middle east and Africa disappeared. People were left to fend for themselves and as if by magic or coincidences thousands of hardened criminals managed to escape prison. With an internet blackout and the absence of security, fear and panic was palpable in every home.

At that point it was well know that economy has come to a grinding halt. The government then started a vicious campaign in government run media that portrayed the anti-government protesters as responsible for their hardship. That campaign at some point shied from calling the protesters criminals but it was giving many hints that there actions were destroying the country. This was combined with fuel shortages and food shortages. There was mass looting going on and that was also blamed on the protesters.

My impression is that it was the National Democratic Party thugs who were responsible... it is no secrete that there are many thousands of those, but up to this point they were put to use to intimidate government opposition.

Things were getting desperate in the next few days and many were gripped with fear and a desire to return to normalcy. Many people were bleary eyed and tired from having to do neighborhood watch. Everybody felt that they could not go on like that much longer. This situation was even more critical for the many Egyptians who earn their living through daily wage. Those have no reserves or savings and their children must have been starting to grow hungry. Dread and fear was thick in the air, and for many that sense of isolation was growing. Not just isolation from the outside world due an Internet blackout, but also from each other.

Whole neighborhoods were locked down and only neighborhood residence were not allowed passage during curfew hours, which ran daily from 3pm to 8am. Fragmentation was on the rise again.

Word spread that on the first of February there will be a million person march to Tahrir square. The government orchestrated a campaign of fear and fragmentation did not deter the protester from showing on that day. That is despite the fact that many were still fearful for their family and property. Many criminals are still out of the loose. Yet after a massive show up and cries for “the people want bring down the president” rocked the whole of Tahrir square, that voice seemed unheard to Mubark and his coterie.

Later in the day he made that announcement that he will not be running for another term, that was too little and too late for the protesters. Mubarak had at this point due to the security vacuum and slow action proven untrustworthy and not fit to rule if one were to describe it in generously. The consensus however amongst those in Tahrir is that he is criminal thug of the worst kind.

My view was that this man is determined to maintain his grip on power, even if it mean the total destruction of his country. However, many Egyptians who had not witnessed first hand the spirit and events on the 25th and 28th of January were at that point in time scared and starved into submission, for them the return to “normalcy” was paramount.

Moreover, some of those who were not directly involved felt that this was a significant achievement and we should just stop here and deal with the rest through other political methods. Their fear made them lose sight of the fact that it was Mubark who ordered a telecommunication black out, it was Mubarak or his police chief who was responsible for the security breakout and the loss of life and limb during the demonstration. It was his tyrannical arrogance and gross inhumanity to the death of many of Egypt's finest youth that outraged the protesters the most.

He made no apology, not even a hint, and not a promises that those responsible will be held accountable. He had proven completely untrustworthy to the protesters, and we were determined to stay in Tahrir until Mubarak leaves. The Egyptian government media and even most privately owned ones started to present the view that the protesters had achieved a great deal of what they had wanted and that further protest at Tahrir would only send the country into chaos. They blamed all the hunger and fear they have been experiencing on the protesters.

Furthermore Mubark made a statement that brought several Egyptians to tears. Here was an elderly president reminding Egyptian of his services to the country through times of war and peace and telling that he intends to die in his country and never flee it. Mubark has for many years maintained a father figure status amongst many Egyptians and few would doubt that he has indeed done good things for the country, and there was a complex love-fear-hate relationship that he had with his people. A feeling grew amongst many Egyptians that such a man was worthy of more dignified exit than the president of Tunisia. That feeling was not shared by those who experience first hand the demonstration on the 28th and saw many of their “brothers” maimed or killed for freedom.

Freedom to us is none negotiable, Mubark has shown his true face as a tyrant and there was no doubting his phony democracy.

We held our ground at Tahrir and we were adamant that our demands must be met. When I joined them on the following day, it was clear that their numbers have dwindled. Many, it seemed could not stomach further disruption to normalcy. Many had to go out and work to feed their families. It was a very sad sight with a great deal of tension in the air.

The National Democratic Party started to slip in agents into Tahrir to play on the protester fears. Many had a sad countenance, fearing the loss of the spirit that they managed to bring about. The protester had heard the Mubarak's people are organizing a demonstration to support him that will be marching to Tahrir square, we were determined to hold our Revolution to the highest ideals and no let any weapon into Tahrir. We were often chanting “selmia” in reference to our desire to keep it peaceful.

Around noon we were attacked from several sides by the pro-Mubarak protesters. It was a vicious and organized attack, something that was cleary planned. In the beginning we tried to simply push the pro-Mubarak protesters away and then many fell under a hail of rocks. It is clear that the pro-Mubarak protesters were going the way of violence.

That noble flame and spirit of the revolution was fading away. The dream was almost dying. Just when all seemed lost, the noble posters had to resort to violence for self defense. It was sad to see a peaceful and innocent protest turn very violent in the face of thuggery. We held strong against armies of payed thugs and members of Mubark's police force in plain clothes.

This Revolution is NOT about politics. It does not have an agenda or an ideology. It is about the awakening of a new spirit in Egypt. For it to grow it must breath the clean and fresh air of freedom. When it is born it was gasping for air and had hence to almost instinctively, as a baby would, try to remove the dirty old rag of pseudo-democracy and tyranny from its face.

I pray that the beautiful spirit will survive with minimum scars after the violence on the 2nd and 3rd of February.

Mohammed El-Beltagy
The writer is a professor of Operations Research at Cairo University and co-founder of Peerialism, a Stockholm based Software company

1001 Inventions and The Library of Secrets

2011-01-21T20:41:00.003+02:00

هِيلاَ هِيلاَ يا مَطَرْ

2011-01-21T14:07:00.003+02:00

Seems that rain is a source of inspiration to many people around the world, and not only me! .. It was raining here in Cairo this week, and this time I didn't miss it :D..

That was enough to cheer me up again (regardless of those *comic* stuff we hear or see in the news these days).. Cause, yes, it's true that after every rainfall must come a rainbow :)..

O Allah! Show us the truth, and give us the strength to follow it..

هِيلاَ هِيلاَ يا مَطَرْ

اِغْسِلي اوْراق الشَجَرْ

الحُلْم مثْل الوَرْد يكْبَرْ

والهِلالْ يصْبَحْ قَمَرْ

اُدْخُلِي بِيُوت القَصَبْ

واسْقِي أزْهار الغَضَبْ

وخَبِّرِي دَمْعِةْ بِلادِي

إنّ ماسِحْهَا حَضَرْ

قَطْرةْ قطْرَة عَ الدُرُوبْ

غَنِّي لِعْطَش القُلُوبْ

وما تْخافِي السَحابْ يا حرة

الصَفْو مِنْ بَعْد الكدَرْ

ضُمِّينِي وبِلِّي لِي رِيقِي

وغَطِّي بِلْحافِكْ رَفِيقِي

مَهْمَا عَثَّرْنِي طَرِيقِي

المَسِيرَةْ تَسْتمرّ

*******

Come down O Rain!

Wash the trees' leaves

A dream - just like a rose - grows

And the crescent becomes a full moon

Enter the huts and shanty towns

And water the flowers of anger

And inform my country's tears

That the one who is going to wipe them has arrived

Drop by drop on the paths

Sing for the hearts' thirst

And do not fear the clouds O free land

Good times always follow the bad ones

Embrace me and quench my thirst

And cover with your blanket my companion

No matter how many times I fall

The journey will continue

Song by: Hamza Namira

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=10150117037364085&id=26649514084&aid=320398

Be What You Must

2011-01-08T14:57:00.002+02:00

I have journeyed endless miles

Seen many harbors,

Where I took rest awhile

On this boat called ‘near & far’,

To be what you must,
You must give up what you are

Only on a wind of hope my heart sailed

Braving mystic oceans to arrive

Those who do not leave

And choose to stay…

Barely survive

Be you dust; or be you star

To be what you must
Just reach out for what you are

And though you’ve traveled many roads

There’s but one way, and that’s the one you chose

Song for: Yusuf Islam

Album: Roadsinger (2009)

I've Missed The Rain!!!

2011-01-05T23:08:00.002+02:00

People would usually miss the train.. Miss the bus.. Miss the appointment.. But, me... Oh me!!

I've missed the RAIN!!!! :'( :'(

It has rained where I live, but it didn't where I work!! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the streets so wet.

For the whole last five years, I've been arguing with everyone, and saying "Oh, come on! It's not that far, anyway!!". OK, now I admit it.. It's a far distance.. A loooooong distance!!

How strange! Sobhan Allah!! Today, I was looking at the sky from my office's windows; and it was so clear, and very sunny! And I wondered, "When would it rain!"..

And the strangest, is that deep down, somehow, I was expecting that! I expected to miss the rain.. And that is not a good sign.. Not good at all!.. Cause lately almost all my expectations became a truth.. And they weren't happy ones!

Now, all what I can do is to keep praying for rain...

How yearning am I for rain...

Domestic Violence in Islam

2011-01-01T20:57:00.000+02:00

Part 1:

Part 2:

Islam In Brief

2010-12-16T01:52:00.001+02:00

Well, such things I do make sure that I view it in a totally objective point of view, as much as I could, and to think carefully about its content. So, I really liked this documentary film. Mashaa Allah! Very simple, yet descriptive.

Very special thanks to my friend Amira Aboulros, for sharing it with me. Gazaky Allahu Khairan.

Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, and Part 8.

References:
http://www.youtube.com/user/IslamInBrief

Alexandria Thoughts..

2010-11-12T20:33:00.007+02:00

Last Friday, I've been to Alexandria. I'd categorize this under thoughtful adventures. Nothing crazy or risky happened; just a lot of new ideas and thoughts were there!

It's my first time been there, and for some reason I expected to see a city that's totally different from anywhere else I'd seen before. But it was like anywhere else in Egypt! A totally Egyptian city, with that well-known Egyptian theme! OK, I'm still in Egypt anyway!! :D

Yet, it was a very nice city, with beautiful squares, and clean streets. Almost at every square we passed by, there's a nice statue or a beautiful fountain.

Our first stop was at The Royal Jewelry Museum, or The Jewelry Palace. It's a palace built by one of Muhammad Ali Basha's grand-daughters Princess Fatima El-Zahraa. Now, it's a museum for the Royal family jewelries.

Well, for me, it was such an odd place! The walls, and even the ceilings, were full of amazing paintings. It was quite clear that the princess was a big fan of the European style in everything! Or maybe it was the wave at that time.. Don't know..!!

Did I say the paintings were amazing?! Hmm.. OK, there's no doubt, at all, that who painted them was such a creative and talented artist. The paintings were indeed made with a great deal of accuracy and professionalism. The point is.. I really didn't like their meanings!!!

I love art, and that was my first time to see such a professional art, with a very bad message! Don't know how to express this, it still very odd for me myself!!

That's about the palace. Regards the jewelries there, the most attractive piece there is a chess game. It was such an awesome chess, made in India! Every single piece is made of gold, and diamonds. The most interesting, and fascinating, part is that the maker paid a very careful attention even to the pieces' base!! Every piece's base is picture of a significant character or place in the Indian history. It was AWESOME!!

The next stop was at Qaitbay Citadel. What a huge place!! A totally military castle, without any touch or art!! One of our group raised a quite cleaver question. "Why it's been built at this spot only? and the whole shore is left without any defenses?". I believe that's because that "spot" was the most vulnerable at the whole shore at that time. It's true that the shore is too long, yet, there's no where suites warships or fleets. Or perhaps there was, but not fitting a whole army to walk through. Or maybe there were no road! Not very sure actually..

But, I'm very sure that it wasn't built so likely. It can't be, can it?! I believe that things that last for long time, with great effect, wouldn't be found without perfect planing, and lots of sciences and knowledge. That's how things last for eternity.

Yes, such places inspires me. The place speaks about those who created it. Great people left their fingerprint, with their own style, even after their death. You know, you'd see many recently-added ugly writings on its walls here and there, made by young kinds, in a try to leave their own "fingerprints" too!! It's such an ugly view! I really can't stop thinking about the huge difference about the two ways of thinking!!

A person wants to leave something, so people would remember him, so he built a castle; and another one want the exact same thing, so he write his nickname and phone number on the wall!!!! Pathetic! I guess they'd never heard the Prophet -PBUH- saying,"Muslim is like a bee... whenever it stands on a branch, never breaks it, or a flower, never Scratches it"! Soubhan Allah!

Anyway, the most enjoyable thing at the citadel is the sea view. Marvelous! That day the weather was really good. Sunny day, with a clear sky, and nice wind. You can see the whole shore from there. A really good place for meditation, and getting lost in your thoughts.. Specially if you had Sami Yusuf's Healing track on your list ;)

See, as I said, just thoughts..
But, it was so so so enjoyable :)
Planning for another time there, but with much more crazy stuff to do ;)

Trip Photos:
All photos here belong to me & Yasser El-Shaa'rawy.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=292053&id=574338652&l=30bea82feb

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Jewelry_Museum
http://www.ask-aladdin.com/qaitbay.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citadel_of_Qaitbay
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandria
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tug63dI4MEY
http://www.samiyusufofficial.com/healing/

What's The Value..?!!

2010-11-06T12:22:00.000+02:00

What's the value of faith inside a heart that can't reflect what's inside it?!
What's the value of an idea keeps sinking down in a mind can't speak of himself?!
What's the value of Truth in a soul isolating herself away from the world?!!

Naming Objects.. Is Sunnah! :)

2010-07-23T16:21:00.009+03:00

At college, we, me and my friends, used to name our objects. Most of them ware our laptops, flash memories, and cars ;).

We used to have fun, lot of fun, by doing so. Our collections included, Nemo, Hana, Lama, Harry, Cutie (or QT), Hamada, Google. That for laptops :D, and for flash memories, there was Khokha, and 3YA Shedeed (or shoshtey). The only car we had is Loza :).

Every name has its own special memories that’s associated with great time we have together.

Couple weeks ago, I was reading “The genius of Mohammad” By Abbas El-Akkad. And there was a chapter about Muhammad -PBUH- The Friend. The author mentioned that Muhammad -PBUH- was so friendly and gentle even with objects! He said..

لا بل شمل عطفه الاحياء والجماد كأنه من الاحياء، فكانت له قصعه يقال لها الغراء. وكان له سيف محلى يسمى ذا الفقار، وكانت له درع موشحة بنحاس تسمى ذات الفضول، وكان له سرج يسمى الداج وبساط يسمى الكز وركوة تسمى الصادر، ومرآة تسمى المدلة، ومقراض يسمى الجامع، وقضيب يسمى الممشوق

وفي تسمية تلك الاشياء بالاسماء معنى الألفة التي تجعلها أشبه بالأحياء المعروفين ممن لهم السمات والعناوين، كأن لها “شخصية” مقربة تميزها بين مثيلاتها، كما يتميز الأحباب بالوجوه والملامح و بالكنى والألقاب

Well, we never realized that it’s Sunnah!! Subhan Allah :)
I don’t even thought that He -PBUH- was, and still, so merciful, and gentle to that extend! Honestly, every time I read about Him -PBUH-, or get to know Him more, I just admire Him more and more.

Allahuma Saly wa Salem Ala Saydena Muhamd.

And by the way, here’s the my Miki Wazowski (Korty elbo3bo3).. My work’s laptop :D

عن القلوب

2010-05-22T10:15:00.004+03:00

ماضُرِبَ عبد بعقوبة أعظم من قسوة القلب والبعد عن الله

كما أن البدن اذا مرض لم ينفع فيه الطعام والشراب، فكذلك القلب اذا مرض بالشهوات لم ينفع فيه المواعظ

القلوب آنية الله في أرضه، فأحبها اليه أرقها وأصلبها وأصفاها.

شغلوا قلوبهم بالدنيا، ولو شغلوها بالله والدار الآخرة لجالت في معاني كلامه وآياته المشهودة ورجعت الى أصحابها بغرائب الحكم وطرف الفوائد.

اذا غذي القلب بالتذكر، وسقي بالتفكر ، ونقي من الدغل، رأى العجائب وألهم الحكمة.

ليس كل من تحلى بالمعرفة والحكمة وانتحلها كان من أهلها، بل أهل المعرفة والحكمة الذين أحيوا قلوبهم بقتل الهوى. وأما من قتل قلبه فأحيى الهوى، فالمعرفة والحكمة عارية على لسانه.

الشوق الى الله ولقائه نسيم يهب على القلب يروح عنه وهج الدنيا.

من و ّطن قلبه عند ربه، سكن واستراح،و من أرسله في الناس اضطرب واشتد به القلق.

لا تدخل محبة الله في قلب فيه حب الدنيا الا كما يدخل الجمل في سم الابرة.

اذا أحب الله عبدا اصطنعه لنفسه واجتباه لمحبته، واستخلصه لعبادته، فشغل همه به، ولسانه بذكره، وجوارحه بخدمته.

من كتاب الفوائد - ابن القيم الجوزية

Freedom Will Come

2010-05-08T12:36:00.004+03:00

I’ve been to the holy land,
A place cherished by children of Abraham
But this bloodshed and carnage, don’t understand
Son raise your head, find the star in the night sky
Freedom will come Palestine, we hear it worldwide,

I see you creeping, over the border
So eager to take a life
Guns a blazing, you bring the horror
Tell me how you sleep at night

Children screamin, no tomorrow
That’s how they’ve lived their lives
Hope’s still burning, freedom will come
Everything’s gonna be alright

No matter how you try
You’ll never kill the hope burning bright deep inside
You may take their lives
But you’ll never kill the voice rising up
Freedom will come, Palestine

As a father buries his child,
You say she deserved to die
But aint nobody buying your lies
How can you say its right?

Demolition of homes and minds
In the eyes of a world gone blind
The revolution aint televised
In the streets, from the blood and dust,
You will hear their cry

Livin conditions vicious
Electricity missin
Villages pillaged
Mothers and children innocent victims
Indigenous however treated as if
They were the foreigner and criminal for showing resistance
Freedom limited by an occupant position
Inhibited transmission from humanitarians
This is just the beginning of these horrific incidents
Innocents disregarded so bombs drop, kill, and injure.
Tell me how hypocritical is it

To receive reparations for the crimes committed
Against you
Only to turn around and do
The same type of atrocities done to you

Face the truth
Justice will win through
And we all will answer for what we do
know oppression never lasts
Stand firm hold fast
To your faith
Let us pray Palestine
Will find freer days

Song for: Zain Bhikha
Album: 1415 The Beginning
Featuring: Abdul Malik Ahmad, Khalil Ismail and Umar Abdullah
Words By: Zain Bhikha, Khalil Ismail and Abdul Malik Ahmad
Melody By: Zain Bhikha

أخر ايام الأرض

2010-04-24T09:28:00.003+02:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsYXSAfn7Ks

A Friend's Quotes :)

2010-04-21T06:06:00.004+02:00

دائما ما يقولوا لنا انتم لم تكبروا بعد وتروا الدنيا على حقيقتها.. كنا لا نصدقهم.. ما الغريب الذى سنراه؟! لكن اتضح انهم كانوا على حق. لقد كشفت الدنيا عن وجهها الأخر.. التحديات والمنافسات غير الشريفة، والوجوه المزيفة و.. و.. و.. لقد شعرت يوما بالخوف والقلق.. لكن عندها وجدت نفسى أكتب دون أن اشعر فى ورقة "ان الله لا يضيع أجر من أحسن عملا".. شعرت بالامان. ان كل أعاصير الدنيا لا شىء طالما انك واثق فى ربنا وواثق فى عدله وفى كرمه. سبحان الله!!

منقول من احد اعز الاصدقاء

Peace Train

2010-04-17T06:29:00.003+02:00

Song for: Yusuf Islam

كلمة السر: اقرأ

2010-03-31T23:05:00.002+02:00

المكان: مكة ،شعابها بالتحديد.

الزمان: القرن السادس الميلادي. قرن نموذجي للأوضاع السيئة التي تسقط فيها الإنسانية بين عصر وآخر. قرن غارق في ظلمة حالكة. والحروب تصبغ وجه العالم بلون الدم. والأديان السماوية لم تعد سماوية بأي شكل من الأشكال وسقطت بين فكي الإفراط والتفريط ولم تنج من مظاهر الوثنية والشرك التي اقتبستها من المدنيات الأخرى…. والمعادلة القديمة إياها: الأغنياء يزدادون غنى. والفقراء يزدادون فقراً. والظلم. الظلم. الظلم.

المناسبة: فرصة البشرية الأخيرة، لتغيير ذلك كله.
وذلك الرجل، ينسحب من مجتمعه الجاهلي بكل تقاليده وعاداته ومكرساته، ليدخل الغار، متأملاً في ذلك كله، ومتعبداً دون طقس معين… وذلك الغار: حفرة في الجبل، ظلمة ورطبة. تعطي لذلك الرجل ما يريده... عزلته السرية وتأملاته الخاصة. في ظلمة الغار يجد عزاء ومواساة للظلمات الأخرى التي يغرق فيها المجتمع… وفي رطوبته ما ينسي ولو مؤقتاً ذاك الجفاف الذي يطغي على العالم في طبيعة علاقاته وعاداته

وحتى تلك اللحظة، كان يبدو لظاهر العيان أن ذلك الرجل المتعبد في غار حراء مرشح ليكون واحداً من هؤلاء الرجال المنسحبين اللذين تصير حياتهم فيما بعد مداراً خاصة لا علاقة لها بما حولها.. حتى تلك اللحظة... بدا ذلك الرجل أنهُ سيكون واحداً من تلك الأقلية المستنكرة، مثل الأحناف أو بعض النصارى من العرب، ممن لا يصل استنكارهم إلى درجة التمرد، وبالذات لا يصل لدرجة محاولة تغيير الأوضاع..

حتى تلك اللحظة، كان كل شيء يسير بشكل يسر الشيطان لأنه يحقق قسمهُ العتيق "فبعزتك لأغوينهم أجمعين". كانت الأديان قد فقدت محتواها الإنساني والروحي معاً. وصارت مجرد طقوس وشعائر لا تغني شيئاً فضلاً عن انحرافاتها الوثنية. وهؤلاء الزهاد المنسحبون... لا صوت لهم ولا دعوة. مجرد أناس على هامش المجتمع..

والمجتمعات البشرية تسير في خطاها المحمومة نحو هاويتها، لاهيةً عن مصيرها بحروبها وعبثها وشهواتها... كانت السماء صامتة – مكفهرة... وكانت الصحراء خرساء كما لو كانت تخفي في أعماقها سراً دفيناً .

كل ذلك كان قبل لحظات... وكان يمكن أن يستمر دهوراً أخرى. لكن حدث خلال لحظة ما غير ذلك كله .. لم يعد ذلك الانسحاب هروباً وعزلة... بل صار انفتاحا نحو العالم كله.. الغار... من ظلمته أنبعث نور غطى وجه العالم أجمع... وذلك الرجل الذي كان مرشحاً ليصير واحداً من أولئك الزهاد المنفصلين عن المجتمع والواقع والتأريخ ... ذلك الرجل صار أمة ... عندما جاءت تلك اللحظة... اللحظة... الذروة .

كل ذلك حدث عندما جاء الملك للغار وقال لذلك الرجل تلك الكلمة الهائلة الرهيبة: اقرأ…

اقرأ… بعد صمت طويل... دام حوالي خمسة قرون... جاءت كلمة السماء... اقرأ...

اقرأ... إنها أول كلمة اختارها الله ليعرف نفسه إلى نبيه... بل إلى آخر أنبيائه… وهي لا تشبه أبدا الكلمات الأخرى التي قيلت للأنبياء الآخرين… ففي كل الرسالات السابقة كان الخطاب الإلهي يعتمد على أعجاز(حسي)... عصا تسعى... يد بيضاء... طير يعود إلى الحياة… في كل الرسالات السابقة كان الله يخاطب في الإنسان حواسه… لكنه في هذه المرة، ربما لأنها المرة الأخيرة، اختار – عز وجل – طريقة أخرى... مضمون آخر... وصيغة أخرى…

إنه يخاطب أول ما يخاطب العقل الإنساني هذه المرة... دونما اعتماد على الحواس الإنسانية. إنه يؤسس للغة جديدة في العلاقة بين الله والإنسان... لغة تعتمد على العقل.. لذلك تأتي اقرأ... صيغة ورمز لعلاقة جديدة... بطاقة مختلفة لتعريف مختلف يقدم بها الله وحيه الإلهي... و أي كلمة... تلك هي اقرأ .

اقرأ... كلمة السر... الذي لم يعد سراً بل صار جهراً في العقيدة الجديدة... دونما إبهار أو أساطير أو معجزات تشبه القصص الخرافية… وبينما تنام شعوب على خيالات كلمة السر التي تفتح مغارات الكنوز ،فأن كلمة السر هذه قيلت في الغار ثلاث مرات لرجل أمي ولأمته من بعده ففتحت أبواب العلم وآفاق المعرفة، وجنيت كنوز وكنوز للإنسانية عبر القرون التي سادت فيها حضارة اقرأ .

ولا يدري احد على وجه التحديد في أي مرحلة من مراحل العلم سنكون اليوم لو لم تقال تلك الكلمة "السر" … لكن الذي حدث أن تلك الكلمة التي قيلت في الغار همساً.. صارت شعاراً لحضارة... ومنهاجاً لحياة.. وأول ما انزل من كتاب سيتخذ من الفعل ذاته (اقرأ) اسماً يتلى ويتعبد به في صور وعقول أتباعه…

وكلمة اقرأ لم تكن أول كلمة أنزلت من الوحي فحسب... بل كانت أول فعل أمر أصدره الله إلي رسوله الأخير ، والى أمته من بعده بطبيعة الحال .أي إنها كانت ببساطة شديدة – ودونما تشنجات فقهيه – أول فرض فُرِضَ على محمد (صلى الله عليه وسلم).

القراءة.. أول فرض في الإسلام ، قبل الصلاة والصوم والزكاة والحج. وبعبارة أخرى... كانت كلمة (اقرأ) الشاملة هي المدخل الذي فُرِضَتْ عبره كل الفرائض الأخرى… وبعبارة أوضح و أدق.. كان العلم – بمعناه الشمولي والواسع – هو الإطار الذي من خلاله أخذت كل الفرائض الإسلامية موقعها الذي حددته الشريعة فيما بعد…

والحديث عن علاقة الإسلام بالعلم بات حديثاً مكرراً استهلكت فيه المعاني ونفذت وهو حديث يرتكز على الاستشهاد بعدد من الآيات القرآنية التي تشيد بالعلم والعلماء، وعلى كثرة تكرار لفظة علم ومشتقاتها (البالغة حوالي 439 مرة) في القران الكريم – ليستنتج أن الإسلام (حث) على العلم، و أن هذا الحث هو التغيير المنطقي للطفرة العلمية التي أنجزتها الحضارة الإسلامية…

للوهلة الأولى، تبدو مقدمات الاستشهاد ونتائجه صحيحة. لكن عندما يفكر المرء أن الوحي الإلهي بدء بإقرأ، فإنه يقر أن الأمر أكثر من مجرد حث، وان الطفرة العلمية الإسلامية أكثر من مجرد استجابة لهذا الحث… عندما يبتدئ الوحي بإقرأ، فالأمر أكثر من الاستحباب وأكثر حتى من الوجوب. انه يقع في منطقة خارج التقسيمات الاصطلاحية التقليدية.. ويقع في منطقة عميقة جدا في البناء الإسلامي... في الأساس، في الأركان، في القاعدة.

وهذا ما كان واضحا، دونما تنظير فكري – بل كواقع يومي معاش لأفراد الجيل الأول، وهو الذي شكل الدفعة العلمية الكبيرة التي أنجزتها الحضارة الإسلامية. أما أن نتصور أن (الحث) والأوامر الإسلامية بطلب العلم قد حققت ذلك الوثوب وتلك الطفرة – فهو أمر اقرب إلى السذاجة منه إلى النظر والتحقيق العلمي …

لقد كان الإسلام لغة جديدة. روحاً جديدة. مضموناً جديداً بصياغة جديدة للعلاقات الإنسانية مع بعضها ومع الله. وكانت المفردة الأولى التي تكونت في هذه اللغة الجديدة – بالأبجدية الجديدة – هي كلمة اقرأ.

لكن الرجل الذي أنزلت عليه اقرأ كان أميا. وقد ظل علماؤنا لفترة طويلة يفسرون ذلك انه من أدلة النبوة وأوجه الإعجاز في مواجهة المشككين بصدق نبوة محمد (عليه الصلاة والسلام)… لكن الانطلاق من أرضية التصديق بالنبوة يمنح ذلك التناقض الظاهري بين اقرأ وبين أمية النبي أفقا واسعا للتأمل وفضاءاً رحباً للتعليق…

انه يحرر القراءة من أسوارها الأبجدية وحدودها اللغوية – على سعتها – ليطلقها في عالم المعاني شديدة الثراء والخصوبة… انه يحرر القراءة من المفاهيم الجامدة للتلقين الغبي إلى قراءة ما هو غير مكتوب في بطون الكتب… انه دعوة لقراءة كتاب الكون المفتوح، المتمثل في كل ذرة من ذرات الخليقة… والمتجسد في كل حبة رمل ونسمة هواء وثمرة شجر… انه دعوة للقراءة في كتاب النفس الإنسانية... في كل نزعة خير ونزوة شر، وعاطفة حب تهف بها النفس نحو الجمال والسمو أو تسقط بها نحو الرذيلة أو الانحدار…

وهكذا فأقرا هي دعوة لقراءة الكون بأجمعه... الخليقة بأجمعها... والتاريخ... والنفس البشرية… إنها دعوة استقراء واستنباط وتبحر عميق في العلاقة الحتمية بين الأسباب والمسببات وهي ذات الدعوة التي تمخضت فيما بعد بما يسمى اليوم بالمنهج التجريبي في العلوم – والتي كانت من أهم ركائز الانطلاقة الإسلامية في الحركة العلمية. والتي تعتمد على الملاحظة والاستنتاج لكنها بدأت حقا في الواقع اليومي المعاش، من (اقرأ) التي بدأت بملاحظة الظواهر البسيطة المحيطة بالفرد البسيط ولا تنتهي حتى بالكون العميق…

ولو تابعنا الحديث الذي روته السيدة عائشة والذي أورده البخاري في صحيحه لوجدنا نصا شديد الخصوبة يحدثنا فيه الرجل نفسه عن تجربته الهائلة الأولى مع الوحي… والذي يتضح من متابعة الحديث، أن النبي عليه أفضل الصلاة والسلام كان يعي- وان كان بغموض- منذ اللحظة الأولى ضخامة الكلمة التي أنزلت عليه . كان يعلم إنها تتجاوز حدود القراءة الاعتيادية إلى أفق غير منظور.

فهو ينكر الطلب "ما أنا بقارئ" –ثلاثا– وهو يرجع بها و يرجف بها فؤاده ويقول "لقد خشيت على نفسي" – وقبلها يطلب "زملوني زملوني" فزملوه حتى "ذهب عنه الروع". كل ذلك يؤكد بشكل قاطع انه عليه أفضل الصلاة والسلام كان يدرك منذ اللحظات الأولى لرسالته أهمية ما جرى له وأهمية ما نزل به الوحي. ولم ينقل عنه أبداً انه استشكل أمر القراءة وهو الأمي – وهذا يعني انه كان يعي أن أمر القراءة يتجاوز الشكل الحرفي – الأبجدي – إلى معنى الوعي والاستقراء كله ثم أكد له ورقة بن نوفل ما كان يدور في وعيه: "هذا الناموس الذي نزل الله على موسى"...

ولم تكن سوى ثلاث آيات لكن ورقة وجد فيها الناموس، ووجدها سحيقة القدم عميقة الجذر تتصل بموسى – بعمق التاريخ. ثم قال منبهاً: "ليتني أكون حياً إذ يخرجك قومك" ولعل محمداً كان يعلم الجواب – أو يخالجه – إذ سأل: "أو مخرجيَّ هم؟" لضخامة الكلمة - الناموس- التي ألقيت عليه، فيجيبه ورقة ما يجيبه، وضمن الجواب "نعم"!

وعندما نزل وحي السماء "اقرأ" بعد ذلك الصمت الطويل لم يحدث شيء. لم تنطفئ الشمس. لم ينشق القمر. لم تتعطل قوانين الفيزياء ولا لحظة واحدة. لم تسقط الشهب والنجوم ولم يتصدع إيوان كسرى ولا عرش قيصر. لم يحدث شيء على الإطلاق. ولم يسمع أحد خارج الغار هذه الكلمة الهمسة التي جاء بها الملك إلى محمد ولو انه لم ينقل الخبر لما عرف أحد. لم يحدث شيء غير طبيعي بتاتا،ً فقط كلمات قيلت في أذن الرجل وقلبه في غار مظلم في شعاب مكة.

ظل الحال على ما هو عليه: الشمس تشرق وتغيب في مواعيدها والكون كله سائر على الخطة المحكمة المرسومة له بإتقان دون أن يتأثر بما حدث. هذه المرة- وهي المرة الأخيرة بالمناسبة- لن يكون هناك أي داع لتحدي قوانين الفيزياء… الأكثر من ذلك أن هذه الرسالة ستكون في حقيقتها صلحاً مع هذه القوانين لا تحدياً. هذه المرة سيكون التغيير في الداخل، في العقل، في القلب، في الوعي، سيكون التغيير في الإنسان وهو الذي سيفعل الباقي. ماذا كان سيفيد لو انشق القمر أو تصدع إيوان كسرى أو انطفأت الشمس؟. المهم إن ينشأ وعي جديد لمفاهيم جديدة ليكون مجتمعاً آخرا هو الذي يصدع إيوان كسرى أو عرش قيصر. لذلك نقول بفخر: لم يحدث شيء بتاتاً. وكان ذلك منسجماً اشد الانسجام مع فحوى ومضمون الكلمة الأولى... اقرأ .

كانت تلك هي الولادة الجديدة للوعي الإنساني. وللعقل الإنساني التي حدثت في غار حراء. أما المخاض – مخاض الوعي – فسيستمر فترة طويلة تتجاوز حتى الـ 23 عاما التي كونت عمر الدعوة… وعبر القرون سيعاني المخاض كثيرون، أولئك يجددون الوعي المسلم والفكر المسلم، بل يبعثون للأمة دينها (كما جاء في الحديث الصحيح) إنهم يمنحون للقراءة أبعادها المتجددة المتفاعلة مع إرهاصات الواقع وتراكمات الخبرة الإنسانية…

من جاهلية مشركي مكة إلى نظام العولمة المهيمنة، يظل جوهر المخاض واحداً. إنها (اقرأ). حتى وان غفلنا عنها لقرون، تخفت أحياناً ويكون صوت الضجيج أعلى من همسة الغار، لكنها هناك موجودة، في الأعماق، وإذا أنصتنا قليلاً لنبض الوعي، فستكون همسة الغار أعلى من كل الأصوات، أقوى من كل الأصوات… ابلغ من كل الأصوات...

رغم سعة الأفق الذي انطلقت فيه تلك الكلمة – اقرأ- إلا إنها مع ذلك مبنية على قواعد وأسس متينة، والاهم من ذلك.. ثابتة. ولعلنا هنا يجب أن نسجل أن الثبات ليس عيبا نخجل منه ونتجاهله – كما هو المعتاد اليوم في عصر يفخر بأنه عصر المتغيرات السريعة. نعم. هناك متغيرات، ولكن هناك أيضا ثوابت. ونحن لا نخجل إذ نقر: في ديننا ثوابت. في عقيدتنا ثوابت. في حضارتنا ثوابت وفي مفاهيمنا ثوابت. ولذلك فقراءتنا أيضاً مستندة إلى ثوابت.

وهذه الثوابت هي قاعدة رؤية وأساس لنظر، إنها العصب البصري الذي يغذي العين التي تقرأ، والبصيرة التي تستوعب… وهذه الثوابت لا تمارس دوراً انتقائياً سلطوياً فوقياً على موضوع القراءة – أو النظر… فالعالم كله، الخليقة كلها، بل تفاصيلها وكل تدرجاتها، تظل ميداناً مفتوحاً لإقرأ… لكن الانطلاق نحو ذلك يظل محكوماً بالقواعد القرآنية. بالرؤية القرآنية. بالمقاصد الثابتة للشريعة التي تتوجه نحو ما هو ثابت – وهي مقاصد مستقاة من القران نفسه… فاقرأ تتكامل وتتحد – بالقران –عبر القران تتوضح زوايا الرؤية ويصير القران نفسه قراءة للعالم والخليقة والكون ككل…

و (إقرأ) تمثلت في منجزات حضارية مختلفة ومتنوعة – كانت في حقيقتها جوهر الحضارة التي ارتكزت على همسة الغار… فمرة تمثلت في فقه متجدد قائد يتجدد مع تطورات المجتمع والظروف. ومرة تمثلت في عدالة اجتماعية شملت كل مواطنيها في البلدان المفتوحة ايضاً… وتمثلت في صراع متأجج بين قوى متناحرة، ومتنافرة: الأولى التزمت بـ (إقرأ) المتجددة الفهم للمقاصد والثانية حاولت الزام قراءة واحدة – جاهلية غالباً- على الواقع والمجتمع…

ورغم اختلاف الشعارات، وتبدلها بين الحين والاخر… فان إقرأ، كانت دوماً هناك في العمق، خلف الكواليس وخلف الستار. وعندما اختفت (إقرأ)، صارت مجرد كلمة دون المعاني والافاق والمقاصد، صار الصراع يمثل – رؤى جامدة ومتوارثة دون ذلك الفهم، دون ذلك التجدد، دون تلك المقاصد أي باختصار: دون ذلك الاسلام – الحقيقي .

في البدء كانت إقرأ ؟ لا. ليس في البدء فقط. انها في البداية والنهاية وفيما بينهما. إنها الأمر الأول – الفرض الأول غير القابل للاستئناف او النسخ. والذي لا يكسب فعاليته وحيويته الا باستمراره على كل الأوامر التالية – بل كل الأمور التالية – والتي لا تكتسب – هي الأخرى – فعاليتها الا بالتعامل مع الأمر الأول: إقرأ… لذلك فان إقرأ ليست مجرد بداية تاريخية لنزول الوحي. إنها البداية والنهاية وما بينهما. إنها جوهر الحكاية بأكملها. الحكاية التي لم تنته بعد!

منقول من بعض مقدمة كتاب البوصلة القرآنية للدكتور احمد خيري العمري

Mysterious Like The Dark Side Of The Moon!

2010-03-23T23:32:00.004+02:00

& that what I really like about U :)

It's Raining!!

2010-02-25T21:41:00.004+02:00

It has been raining all day today. That is amazing. I really love it when it rains. I love watching those little cute drops falling down, and washing everything. The city looks much pretty and clean after raining.

It's a good sign. It means blessings and mercy from Allah Subhano Wa Taala :)

Prophet -PBUH- used to make Duaa when it rains. He -PBUH- prayed to Allah -Subhano Wa Taala-, and said:"We have been given rain by the grace and mercy of Allah"

مُطِرنا بفضل الله ورحمته

I've found a good article for Haron Yahia about Rain. Here's some parts of it:

Rain is indeed one of the most important factors for the permanence of life on earth. It is a prerequisite for the continuation of activity in a region. Rain, which carries great importance for all living things, including human beings, is mentioned in various verses of the Qur'an, where substantial information is given about the formation of rain, its proportion and effects. This information, which never could have been known by the people of the time, shows us that the Qur'an is the word of God.
"He sends down (from time to time) water from the sky in due measure, and We raise to life therewith a land that is dead. Even so will you be raised (from the dead)" Surat Az-Zukhruf, 11

وَالَّذِي نَزَّلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً بِقَدَرٍ فَأَنشَرْنَا بِهِ بَلْدَةً مَّيْتًا كَذَلِكَ تُخْرَجُونَ

"It is God Who sends the Winds, and they raise the Clouds: then does He spread them in the sky as He wills, and break them into fragments, until you see rain-drops issue from the midst thereof: then when He has made them reach such of his servants as He wills, behold, they do rejoice!" Surat Ar-Room, 48

اللَّهُ الَّذِي يُرْسِلُ الرِّيَاحَ فَتُثِيرُ سَحَابًا فَيَبْسُطُهُ فِي السَّمَاء كَيْفَ يَشَاء وَيَجْعَلُهُ كِسَفًا فَتَرَى الْوَدْقَ يَخْرُجُ مِنْ خِلالِهِ فَإِذَا أَصَابَ بِهِ مَن يَشَاء مِنْ عِبَادِهِ إِذَا هُمْ يَسْتَبْشِرُونَ

In the Qur'an, many verses call our attention to a particular function of rain, which is "giving life to a dead land":

"We send down pure water from the sky. That with it We may give life to a dead land, and slake the thirst of many beings We have created, beasts as well as humans" Surat Al-Furqan, 48-49

وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَرْسَلَ الرِّيَاحَ بُشْرًا بَيْنَ يَدَيْ رَحْمَتِهِ وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ السَّمَاء مَاء طَهُورًا * لِنُحْيِيَ بِهِ بَلْدَةً مَّيْتًا وَنُسْقِيَهُ مِمَّا خَلَقْنَا أَنْعَامًا وَأَنَاسِيَّ كَثِيرًا

In addition to furnishing the earth with water, which is an inevitable need of living beings, rain also has a fertilization effect.

Rain drops that reach the clouds after being evaporated from the seas, contain certain substances "that will give life" to a dead land. These "life-giving" drops are called "surface tension drops". Surface tension drops form on the top level of the sea surface which is called the "micro layer" by biologists. In this layer, which is thinner than one tenth of a millimeter, there are many organic leftovers caused by the pollution of microscopic algae and zooplankton.

Some of these leftovers select and collect within themselves some elements which are very rare in sea water, such as phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and some heavy metals like copper, zinc, cobalt and lead. These "fertilizer"-laden drops are lifted up into the sky by the winds and after a while they drop on the ground inside the rain drops. Seeds and plants on the earth find numerous metallic salts and elements essential for their growth here in these rain drops. This event is revealed in another verse of the Qur'an:

"And We send down from the sky rain laden with blessing, and We produce therewith gardens and grain for harvests" Surah Qaf, 9

وَنَزَّلْنَا مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً مُّبَارَكًا فَأَنبَتْنَا بِهِ جَنَّاتٍ وَحَبَّ الْحَصِيدِ

References:
http://us1.harunyahya.com/Detail/T/EDCRFV/productId/3352/RAIN_BY_DESIGN
http://www.islamic-knowledge.com/Hisn_al_Muslim/Rain_Weather.htm
http://www.quranexplorer.com/quran

Find Your Strongest Life

2010-02-23T20:12:00.006+02:00

At the end of last year, Marcus released his new book Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently.

The book has inspired a lot of commentary, and we have fielded numerous questions related to creating a strong life. Below, we share our answers to a few of the most popular questions.

# How do I discover my purpose?
That word "discover" is a sneaky one, isn’t it? It implies that your purpose is there, intact, just waiting to be found like Fleming discovered penicillin. But your purpose or destiny is not something that is going to dawn on you one day in a Eureka-type moment. Let that go. Goals, dreams, and vision are important, but they do not provide the answer to living a fulfilled life.

The answer lies in your strengthening moments. You have to pay attention to the activities, instances and events in your life that fill you up. They teach you, guide you and sustain you. Like small flames, they can be fanned into bigger fires with a little attention. Your strongest life is built through a continuous practice of designing moment by moment.

Everyone has heard the old adage: Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans. Are you actually registering your experience as you live your life or are you always looking into the rearview mirror pining over what happened, or staring off into the distance imagining what will happen—all the while missing out on what is actually happening?

Moments matter most. Build off of a few strong moments, follow the path they lay out for you, and trust your direction. They will not let you down.

# How do I balance it all?
Try typing the word "balancing" into your word processor. Nothing unusual there. Now try typing the word "imbalancing." Your computer doesn’t like that word, does it? You get those squiggly red lines underneath telling you that it’s not really a word. You won’t find it in the dictionary. Although we all know what it means to balance things intentionally, we don’t really understand the idea of intentionally imbalancing anything. We all need to start working on our imbalancing acts.

First, stop chasing that elusive balance. It doesn’t exist. Chasing it does not serve you. If anything, the pursuit of it is likely draining you. Think about the last time that you actually tried to physically balance on something. Didn’t it take massive amounts of effort, focus and skill to achieve a moment of balance before you lost it again? People who are leading happier, more fulfilling lives actually focus on intentionally imbalancing their lives towards the activities that make them feel stronger, more engaged, fulfilled and alive. They seek the moments that they know fill them up and they engineer their lives to experience more of those moments. They do not kowtow to anyone else’s vision for their lives. They choose confidently those experiences that will make them feel happier. They trust themselves.

Many of us feel stress and get overwhelmed not because we’re taking on too much, but because we’re taking on too little of what really strengthens us. The more weakening activities you pile onto your plate, no matter how simple they may seem to tackle, the more you will find your energy and focus being flushed away. The best way to cure stress is to become more conscious of the moment-to-moment experiences of your daily life and begin to make different strengthening choices.

Search your moments. Whenever you consider taking on a new responsibility or commitment, investigate and be certain that there are opportunities for strengthening moments within it.

If the commitment doesn’t offer you the chance for such moments, DO NOT TAKE IT ON. Do not take it because you are worried about letting someone else down or concerned about not doing enough. You do enough. You ARE enough. Accept yourself. You are at your best when you’re committed to activities that strengthen you. As you take more of these on, you’ll find yourself more energetic, focused, clear and happy. Stop prioritizing your goals and start prioritizing your moments.

# I have a lot of ideas, but never seem to follow through on them. I want to write a book, want to be a professional speaker, want to be super organized and have a super clean house. Why do I sabotage myself from going forward with these "dreams"?

It’s interesting how often the word "dream" comes up in our society when we talk about our hopes for the future. We talk about our dream jobs and about living the American dream, and we all think we understand what the word means. But different people mean vastly different things when they talk about dreams.

For some people, the word "dream" is synonymous with "goal"—it’s something they are working actively to achieve. For others, dreams remain mere fantasies, things they don’t believe they can achieve, and so they don’t even try. For such people, the appeal of having a dream is that it skips ahead to the accomplishment, rather than bogging down in the difficult details of the process. We dream of having a clean house—but who dreams of actually doing the cleaning? We don’t have to dream about doing the work, because doing the work is always within our grasp; the dream, in this sense, is to attain the goal without the work.

And for that kind of dream, there is simply no solution except either to abandon it, or to turn it into a true goal. The only way to do that is to start doing what’s necessary to achieve it. Of course, it can be difficult to take that first step, and we can get bogged down in our weaknesses. But if you’re energized by your ideas and can’t find a way to channel that energy, that’s when you have to rely on your friends and colleagues and family members.

Often, if you’re having difficulty starting a project, it can be easier to collaborate or brainstorm with others to get the ball rolling. If you know someone with a knack for planning and organizing, ask if she’d mind sitting down with you to talk about some of your ideas. Involving others can also give you someone to be accountable to for making progress. Once you’re started down a path, ultimately it’s up to you to sustain the momentum.

References:
TMBC subscription service

Favorite Movies Quotes (3)

2009-12-16T21:15:00.008+02:00

The Tale Of Despereaux
"Destiny is a funny thing. We go out to meet it and we don't always know that we are", Narrator

"The story said she was a prisoner but that wasn't totally true because she had hope, and whenever you have hope, you're never really anybody's prisoner", Narrator

"Sometimes it doesn't take much for your dreams to come true, you just have to be able to see it that way", Narrator

"Ok, remember when we said that grief was the strongest thing a person could feel? Well, it isn't. It's forgiveness, because a single act of forgiveness can change everything", Narrator

**********

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
"Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light", Albus Dumbledore

**********

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
"Curiosity is not a sin.... But we should exercise caution with our curiosity", Albus Dumbledore

**********

A Bug's Life
"Now, do you see our tree? Everything that made that giant tree is already contained inside this tiny little seed. All it needs is some time, a little bit of sunshine and rain, and voilá!.. Seed to tree... You might not feel like you can do much now, but that's just because, well, you're not a tree yet. You just have to give yourself some time. You're still a seed", Flik

**********

Tinker Bell
"Your talent makes you who you are. You should be proud of it!", Tinker Bell

**********

Patch Adams
"See what no one else sees. See what everyone chooses not to see... out of fear, conformity or laziness. See the whole world anew each day!", Arthur Mendelson

**********

Mulan
"The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all", The Emperor of China

"A single grain of rice can tip the scale. One man may be the difference between victory and defeat", The Emperor of China

"No matter how the wind howls, the mountain cannot bow to it", The Emperor of China

Hold My Hand

2009-11-27T01:07:00.007+02:00

I hear the flower's kinda crying loud
The breeze's sound in sad
Oh no
Tell me when did we become,
So cold and empty inside
Lost a way long time ago
Did we really turn out blind
We don't see that we keep hurting each other no
All we do is just fight

Now we share the same bright sun,
The same round moon
Why don't we share the same love
Tell me why not
Life is shorter than most have thought

Hold my hand
There are many ways to do it right
Hold my hand
Turn around and see what we have left behind
Hold my hand my friend
We can save the good spirit of me and you
For another chance
And let's pray for a beautiful world
A beautiful world I share with you

Children seem like they've lost their smile
On the new blooded playgrounds
Oh no
How could we ignore
heartbreaking crying sounds
And we're still going on
Like nobody really cares
And we just stopped feeling all the pain because
Like it's a daily basic affair

No matter how far I might be
I'm always gonne be your neighbor
There's only one small planet where to be
So I'm always gonna be your neighbor
We cannot hide, we can't deny
That we're always gonna be neighbors
You're neighbor, my neighbor
We're neighbors

So hold my hand
There are many ways to do it right
Hold my hand
Turn around and see what have left behind

So hold my hand
There are many ways to do it right
Hold my hand
Turn around and see what have left behind
Hold my hand my friend
We can save the good spirit of me and you
For another chance
And let's pray for a beautiful world
A beautiful world I share with you

Song for: Maher Zain
Album: Thank You Allah

History Of Israel Promo

2009-11-22T21:28:00.002+02:00

http://www.historyofisrael.info/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=128&Itemid=38

Imaginative Mind

2009-10-28T06:28:00.003+02:00

An imaginative mind is one that can visualize beyond direct input and one that can explore things outside of the immediate reality and vicinity.

Initializing Thoughts
Our thoughts are nearly continuous and tuning in to them can be done specifically for creative juices. Often we suppress our own ideas or thoughts in a split second without ever letting it surface to a voice or considered item. We often put a validation screen on our thoughts and bias everything we let surface by the judgments we assign or expect others to assign to that thought.

This limits our mental creativity and kills a thought that would otherwise become the start of a great associative linking of thoughts and advanced creativity. We need to let any thought be developed and explored as our mind makes the neural connections and associations with more and more thoughts. This can happen in moments or it may take hours but it most imaginative if you let a thought continue to build and linger, don’t dismiss it or kill it on purpose. Ever.

Brainstorming
Brainstorming at its best means that anything thought of on a given topic is valid. Anything goes. Any idea is considered no matter how obscure or off-base it may first seem to the logical mind. Logic is often the nemesis of creativity as we tend to judge our ideas and thoughts the moment they begin and we simply don’t give our imaginative mind a chance to develop them.

# Explore as many possibilities as you can
# Any idea is worth exploring at least for a short time
# Sometimes you need to give ideas time and let the subconscious work away

Outside the Box
The other effect our logical mind has is to keep us bounded into what seems reasonable. This unfortunately has a very negative consequence on our imagination as its very difficult to explore outside this box of reason or box of logic. The logical mind is bounded by what we know as well so anything outside this box is suppressed by any logic at first consideration. It’s important to get by this and let the creativity and idea be unbounded and originated from well outside the box.

The imagination is an amazing thing and you can certainly allow it to take hold of you in
visualizing, day dreaming or full on dreaming. We’ve all experienced the power of the mind’s creativity in dreams and its possible to enable that same creativity in waking life if it’s practiced and repeated instead of suppressed. Let your mind wander, have fun with it, just imagine what that seemingly crazy idea might actually be like if you explore it further in your mind.

Contributing to Creativity
There are a number of ways to contribute to social creativity. The ones I think have the biggest impact are the following:

# Eliminate Criticism and Complaining
Criticism and complaining are really the quickest things that kill creativity. Criticism can emotionally shut down a person so quickly that the only creative thoughts they will have is of escape or revenge. It is something that naturally transforms our minds into a completely new state unless we learn to handle criticism and control our response and state of mind consciously.

The best thing you can do with these items to contribute more to social creativity is to eliminate criticism of others, of ideas and of actions. The same goes for complaining since it encourages a very negative thought process not helpful in activating the imagination in any way. Obviously eliminating these is not easy, but they can certainly be reduced and they can definitely be done in private at least in order to minimize the influence to any audience available.

# Brainstorming
Brainstorming in a group activates the imagination of the whole group and quickly allows ideas to germinate with each other and spread between everyone’s minds. It can be done as a group on purpose with a specific topic or goal in mind or it can happen through other media with no initial intention of doing it!

# Asking Questions – Question everything
Questions come about from curiosity and of course curiosity broods creativity. Therefore, questions are a powerful action to contribute more to creativity as well. Everything a person questions, they can learn from and gain some kind of insight from. Questions about how and why something is how it is, leads to seeing more pieces of any puzzle and that puts the mind into a state where it has to think beyond the logic to imagine the solution before all the pieces are understood.

Questions are a huge part of a healthy learning process and they will trigger the mind to explore and wonder with curiosity at things. Questioning the things around you has other benefits as well, it is a useful tool to expand your relationships as well. This is because it shows curiosity to another person.

# Avoid Perfectionism
Perfectionism slows down any creative process and it quickly strangles any new ideas from emerging as it keeps the attention on an original subject or topic while it is closely scrutinized and perfected. There is some room to explore perfecting something with a creative look, but it is usually too focused on one thing where new ideas have no place to be explored until the first topic or item is first perfected.

The Perato principle is useful with social creativity as well and that is where you apply the 80/20 rule. Perfectionist try to get things to that 100% level and they spend most of their time and effort making very little progress once past that 80% point.

References:
http://learnthis.ca/2009/04/the-imaginative-mind-mental-creativity/
http://learnthis.ca/2009/04/the-imaginative-mind-social-creativity/

Now Discover Your Strengths

2009-10-15T07:21:00.004+02:00

The Big Idea
Have you ever wondered why today's organizations concentrate on rectifying your weaknesses? What makes weaknesses so interesting? Have you ever wondered what would happen if, instead of correcting your weaknesses, you capitalized on your strengths?

Organizations spend millions of dollars every year trying to unlock weaknesses, calling them "areas of opportunity," trying to minimize them. Can you imagine what would happen if today's organizations focused on building each of their employees' strengths? Have you ever wondered how much value can be created in an organization where each employee did what he does best?

Strong Lives
Many ordinary and extraordinary people are seemingly gifted with strong lives. They are active and passionate about their work. They are successful in their chosen fields and roles, without seeming to try too hard. How do they do it?

The answer may lie in the fact that these people have, to quote the authors, "identified in themselves some recurring patterns of behavior and then figured out a way to develop these patterns into genuine and productive strengths." By "strength," we mean an activity that one executes consistently, near perfectly.

Three revolutionary tools have been found to help in building a strong life:

1. Understanding how to distinguish natural talent from things you can learn. Talents are your naturally occurring patterns of thought, feeling and behavior. Knowledge consists of facts and lessons learned. Skills are the steps of an activity. These three combine to create your strengths but none of them can substitute for the other. Of these, talent is the most important. Without a natural talent for an activity, you might enjoy some level of success but you are probably not going to excel. In the same vein, knowing your talents but not polishing them via learning more (knowledge) or practice (skills) isn't likely to lead you to excellence, either. It would be good advice for you to discover your dominant talents and then find a way to acquire the knowledge and skills you would need to refine them.

2. Creating a system to identify your dominant talents. The search for your talents must be one that is focused and persistent. You will need to step back and watch yourself, finding out more about how you react naturally to situations or circumstances. Take up a new sport and see how you like it. Engage in new activities and determine if you are inspired by them. It is possible that you'll find some activities boring or unimportant. This is normal and you must continue trying others until you discover your dominant talents. The Strengths Finder profile in Chapter 4 will assist you in this search but it will not define you completely. You must lead the search for your own talents.

3. Having a common language to describe your talents. What need, you might ask, would you have for a language that will describe your talents? We need one because the language for strengths is limited. Because of our interest in weaknesses and frailties, we have come up with a varied language that will describe weaknesses, its stems, its solutions, etc., but we have failed to create one for strengths. What exactly do you mean when you say that a person is self-motivated? What do you mean by people-skills? Why do we use negative connotations for talents? We call people inclined to action impulsive. We call people who claim excellence egotists. People who anticipate problems are called worriers. For these examples and many more, we obviously don't have a language that can describe talents and strengths well enough.

This article is based on the following book:
Now, Discover Your Strengths
By Marcus Buckingham & Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D.
ISBN 0 7432 0114 0
http://www.bestsum.com/2page/NowDiscoverYourStrengths.php

Driving Lessons (2)

2009-08-26T21:01:00.005+02:00

You can read part (1) here.

The Illusion Of Control!!

Two weeks ago was my second driving lesson. This time, Dad decided to promote me to the 2nd level of speed. But before that, he checked if I still remember what we did last week. And here cames the comedy!!

First, I missed the order of actions necessary to start-up the car :(. And after two miserable tries, I finally did it, thanks to Allah (I often miss the orders up :D )!!

After that, Dad aims to make focus on how to make the turn perfectly. The word "perfectly" here means: assuming that there's too many cars around me, how should I keep my car on its track without touching the other tracks, which in returns means touching the other cars, which in returns means a car crash! Soooo simple :-B

I thought that I'm doing great, just as I'm born a driver by nature B-). Dad has another point of view... Well... Let's skip that part O:-)

But, mainly, I've noticed that I treat the driving wheel in a binary system, with no smooth redirecting, which reflected as a terrible zigzagging moving :(

In the middle of Dad's flow of instructions, and my low speed of processing them, I imagined myself going through Cairo's crowdy streets, driving so professionally; and finally after long years of suffering in public transportation, I go to work with MY OWN CAR <:P!!

I woke up from my dreams on a yell from Baba, just after an extraordinary.. stupid turn :">

I was shocked for few seconds. What have I did?!! How could I be so ridicules?!! Where was I ?!!!!!

I realized that I've run away from feeling not so good, to a dream where I see myself as I'd love to see it! That made me lose my attention to the current moment, and that was just about to lead to a disaster!!

It's not the first time to do so. And I'm not the first one to do so too!!

So many people scape from their current miserable lives by just dreaming.. without taking any actions to change the present to the better! I feel that it's so dangerous. It looks like taking a Psychedelic. But Psychedelic never heals diseases, doesn't it?!

There's a huge difference between "Having a vision and a gool to seek it", and "Escaping from reality by living on clouds of illusion".

Hope I made myself clear,
And pray for me to quit my bad habits :D..
Or .. Perhaps.. It's Dad the one needs for prayers O:-)

You Came To Me

2009-08-22T04:44:00.003+02:00

You came to me in that hour of need
When I was so lost, so lonely
You came to me, took my breath away
Showed me the right way, the way to lead

You filled my heart with love,
Showed me the light above
Now all I want is to be with you
You are my one true love,
Taught me to never judge
Now all I want is to be with you

Allahuma salay alla saedeena Mustafa
Ala habibika nabeeka Mustafa

You came to me in the time of despair
I called onto you, you were there
Without you what would my life be
Not know the unseen?, the worlds between

For you I'd sacrifice, for you I'd give my life
Any thing just to be with you
I feel so lost at times of all the hurt and lies
Now all I want is to be with you

Showed me right from wrong
Told me to be strong
Need you more than ever ya Rasulallah

You came to me in that hour of need
Need you more than ever ya Rasulallah

You filled my heart with love,
Showed me the light above
Now all want is to be with you
You are my one true love,
Taught me to never judge
Now all I want is to be with you

Song for: Sami Yusuf

To download:
http://www.samiyusufofficial.com/

Arabic version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ13Dc7VAGk

اللهم لا تحرمنا صحبته في الاخرة وفرحه بنا بوم لقاه

Palestine Will Be Free

2009-08-15T11:02:00.002+03:00

Every day we tell each other
That this day will be the last
And tomorrow we all can go home free
And all this will finally end
Palestine tomorrow will be free
Palestine tomorrow will be free

No mother no father to wipe away my tears
That’s why I won’t cry
I feel scared but I won’t show my fears
I keep my head high

Deep in my heart I never have any doubt
That Palestine tomorrow will be free
Palestine tomorrow will be free

I saw those rockets and bombs shining in the sky
Like drops of rain in the sun’s light
Taking away everyone dear to my heart
Destroying my dreams in a blink of an eye

What happened to our human rights?
What happened to the sanctity of life?
And all those other lies?

I know that I’m only a child
But is your conscience still alive

I will caress with my bare hands
Every precious grain of sand
Every stone and every tree
‘Cause no matter what they do
They can never hurt you
Coz your soul will always be free

Palestine tomorrow will be free
Palestine tomorrow will be free

Driving Lessons

2009-08-11T23:51:00.010+03:00

Lesson Number One :)

This post has nothing to do with Rupert Grint's movie "Driving Lessons", it's about *My* Driving Lessons :D

Last Saturday, was my first lesson, supervised by my Dad ;).

Actually, I was planning for this post long time ago, but I think I'm going to switch into Arabic as my cars English vocabulary isn't that good yet :D

اخيرا... وبعد طووووول إلحاح على الباشمهندس بابا... قرر سيادته ان يحول وعوده الى افعال!

وفي الحالات اللي زي دي، لا يمكن انزل من بيتنا من غير تحميس ورفع معناويات *هايل* من عفريت العلبه (اخويا الضغير):" تبقى سلمي لي على الارصفه وعواميد النور!!!"

رحنا ااااااااااخر المدينة، حيث الجبال و الرمال والهواء الحسن. كان شارع رايح جاي، بس ماكنش فيه ولا حد رايح، ولا حد جاي، كان فاضي خالص... جو مثالي للتدريب...

اول ما ركبت مكان السواق... اترعبت!! وبدأت افكار سوداء تتزاحم في عقلي... (مش هاعرف... هاخبط العربية... هانعمل حادثه... ازاي هسيطر عليهاااا!!!! مش هاعرف... مش هاعرف... مش هااااعررررررررف!!!!)...

وهلم جره (على رأي د. عمرو)... إلا اني قررت ان لا اسمح لمثل هذه الافكار ان تسيطر عليا، وان تسلبني متعتي. فبدأت الافكار البيضا تحل مكان اخواتها السود... (اييييييييوه... دي اللحظه اللي كنت مستنياها... اكيد مش هاتكون اسوء من الـ
Python with OpernERP
زي نيد فور سبيد بالظبط... ياااه... بقالى زمااااان ملعبتش اللعبه دي)!!

دي كانت البدايه... مبشره جداااااااااا... النهايه كانت احلى... لاني قدرت امشي بالعربيه فعلا لمده نص ساعه او ساعه إلا ربع تقريبا في الشارع. كنت بلف الشارع زي ماكون بلف التراك!! يعني قدرت اني امشي في خط مستقيم وألف على الواسع والضيق كمان...

اللي في النص بقى... دا بيني وبين البشمهندس !!

بس اتعلمت عالشان تطلع ، تدوس دبرياج على الاخر خااااالص، تجيب السرعه الاولى ، وبعدين تشيل رجلك من على الدبرياج واحده واحده، وفي نفس الوقت تدوس بنزين... دوس بنزين براحه. كنت فاكره ان كل ما ندوس بنزين السرعة تزيد، بس طلع ان السرعه بتزيد من العصايه اللي في النص دي (مش فاكره اسمها). الموضوع تقريبا معتمد على الاحساس بدواسه البنزين والدبرياج و الفرامل، ودي حاجه لسه محتاجه اتدرب عليها.

بس فعلا تجربه ممتعه، ومن ساعة ما خلص الدرس الاول وانا مستنيه الدرس التاني بفارغ الصبر.

بعد ما رجعت، كان لازم احسس عفريت العلبه ان *تشجيعه* جاب نتيجه، اول ما دخلت قلت له: "شيلت 5 ارصفه، و 16 عمود، وترليتين، وبس!!!!"

يتبع... ان شاء الله

Sami Yusuf's Honorary Doctorate Speech

2009-08-07T13:46:00.004+03:00

Sami Yusuf is one of my inspiration sources. For me, he's not just a singer that I'm one of his fans. I do respect him so much, and highly admire his believes and mentality. May Allah blesses him, and help hem to continue his journey.

Here's a part of his Honorary Doctorate Speech. If you read it carefully, You'd know what I'm talking about.

"I am absolutely honored to accept the award of Doctor of Letters. ...
You may be feeling daunted by this, but we have one thing in common.

We all face challenges in our lives, and we will all strive to overcome them.

Before I go on, I have to admit that I am not a very good Popstar. I don’t drink, don’t do drugs, and you won’t find me hauling Paris Hilton out of a nightclub at 4am. I am also shy, and I hate talking about myself, so please bear with me, I would much rather prefer to sing you a few of my songs – but I have not got any biographical ones.

So a speech it is…

I am not a man to give unwanted advice, but I can tell from my own heart that nothing has given me more pleasure than to be creative, to challenge orthodox thinking and to be the best I can be – from my personal and business relationships, to my work.

Let me explain.

Some of you will obviously be wondering who I am! It is very hard for me to explain, but simply put, I am a proud British Muslim, from London, who has only ever made music I have wanted to make – I kind of call it “Art with a Purpose”

Basically I write and perform music which infuse the spirit of the Muslim character into a new sound both Western and Eastern in flavor and appeal. I have sold albums to fans in countries as diverse as Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and Iran. Which is nice, but that is more of a footnote to the journey.

I created records that were unthinkable by certain Islamic scholars, creating a new market among Muslims of all ages who were not permitted to listen to any popular music without incurring the wrath of family, friends and certain religious authorities.

So - when I first started composing and song-writing, there was simply no market for my music. I was writing about my love of God – not exactly something which would get me the attention of Sony or any of the global labels. Let alone Simon Cowell!

Sitting there at the piano or violin, I never considered whether it was brave or stupid…
…to create music no-one had ever created before
… in a genre that didn’t exist
…to a market which had never bought a pop record before.
Sounds pretty stupid right!

It was just real to me, it was truthful and came from my heart.

Looking back now, I can tell you it is a relief. I certainly must have done something very right.

My own faith, my own identity led me to create this music, which spoke of my love of God and respect for fellow human beings.

All of this came about of me following my dream, being truthful with myself, not faltering or diverting when others have suggested a path I felt in my heart was wrong.

Happiness and success come when you make sure you hold your ideals and dreams as sacred, and then I assure you..

Anything and everything is possible to achieve in life."

References:
http://www.samiyusufofficial.com/?p=1372
http://www.samiyusufofficial.com/?page_id=1065

Favorite Movies Quotes (2)

2009-07-25T21:50:00.003+03:00

Ratatouille
"There are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations, the new needs friends", Anton Ego

"Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere", Anton Ego

"Change is nature, Dad. The part that we can influence. And it starts when we decide", Remy

"If you focus on what you left behind. You will never be able to see what lies ahead. Now go up and look around", Gusteau

"There is excellence all around you. You need only to be aware to stop and savor it", Gusteau

"You must be imaginative, strong-hearted. You must try things that may not work, and you must not let anyone define your limits because of where you come from. Your only limit is your soul. What I say is true - anyone can cook... but only the fearless can be great", Gusteau

**********

Chocolat

"Listen, here's what I think. I think that we can't go around... measuring our goodness by what we don't do, by what we deny ourselves, what we resist, and who we exclude. I think... we've got to measure goodness by what we *embrace*, what we create... and who we include", Père Henri

**********

Spider Man II

"I believe there's a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble. And finally gets us to die with pride", May Parker

**********

Robots

"You can shine no matter what you're made of", Bigweld

First, Break All The Rules

2009-07-04T22:45:00.005+03:00

This book explores the challenge of many companies - attaining, keeping and measuring employee satisfaction. Discover how great managers attract, hire, focus, and keep their most talented employees!

Key Ideas:
1. The best managers reject conventional wisdom.
2. The best managers treat every employee as an individual.
3. The best managers never try to fix weaknesses; instead they focus on strengths and talent.
4. The best managers know they are on stage everyday. They know their people are watching every move they make.
5. Measuring employee satisfaction is vital information for your investors.
6. People leave their immediate managers, not the companies they work for.
7. The best managers are those that build a work environment where the employees answer positively to these 12 Questions:

a. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
b. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
c. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best everyday?
d. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for doing good work?
e. Does my supervisor or someone at work seem to care about me as a person?
f. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
g. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
h. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel my job is important?
i. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
j. Do I have a best friend at work?
k. In the last six months, has someone at work talked to me about my progress?
l. This last year, have I had the opportunity at work to learn and grow?

Without satisfying an employee’s basic needs first, a manager can never expect the employee to give stellar performance. The basic needs are: knowing what is expected of the employee at work, giving her the equipment and support to do her work right, and answering her basic questions of self-worth and self-esteem by giving praise for good work and caring about her development as a person.

More wisdom in a nutshell from First, Break All the Rules:
1. Know what can be taught, and what requires a natural talent.

2. Set the right outcomes, not steps. Standardize the end but not the means. As long as the means are within the company’s legal boundaries and industry standards,let the employee use his own style to deliver the result or outcome you want.

3. Motivate by focusing on strengths, not weaknesses.

4. Casting is important, if an employee is not performing at excellence, maybe she is not cast in the right role.

5. Every role is noble, respect it enough to hire for talent to match.

6. A manager must excel in the art of the interview. See if the candidate’s recurring patterns of behavior match the role he is to fulfill. Ask open-ended questions and let him talk. Listen for specifics.

7. Find ways to measure, count, and reward outcomes.

8. Spend time with your best people. Give constant feedback. If you can’t spend an hour every quarter talking to an employee, then you shouldn’t be a manager.

9. There are many ways of alleviating a problem or non-talent. Devise a support system, find a complementary partner for him, or an alternative role.

10. Do not promote someone until he reaches his level of incompetence; simply offer bigger rewards within the same range of his work. It is better to have an excellent highly paid waitress or bartender on your team than promote him or her to a poor starting-level bar manager.

11. Some homework to do: Study the best managers in the company and revise training to incorporate what they know. Send your talented people to learn new skills or knowledge. Change recruiting practices to hire for talent, revise employee job descriptions and qualifications.

This article is based on the following book:
First, Break All The Rules
‘What The World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently’
By Marcus Buckingham & Curt Coffman
Simon & Schuster

Favorite Movies Quotes :)

2009-06-15T23:16:00.004+03:00

Chicken Run

Bunty: The chances of us escaping are a million to one.
Ginger: Then there's still a chance!

"We die free or we die trying", Ginger

"You know what the problem is? The fences aren't just round the farm. They're up here, in you heads! There's a better place out there, somewhere beyond that hill, and it has wide open places, and lots of trees... and grass. Can you imagine that? Cool, green grass", Ginger

"Where there's a will, there's a way", Ginger

**********

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

"It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends", Albus Dumbledore

**********

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

"It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities", Albus Dumbledore

**********

The Lion King

"Oh yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or... learn from it", Rafiki

"You have forgotten who you are and so have forgotten me. Look inside yourself, Simba. You are more than what you have become. You must take your place in the Circle of Life. Remember who you are. You are my son, and the one true king. Remember...", Mufasa

**********

Antz

"Don't make my mistake, kid. Don't follow orders your whole life. Think for yourself", Barbatus

Say It Like Obama

2009-06-05T15:33:00.003+03:00

Completely away from criticizing Obama's latest speech here in Cairo, almost all people love his way in communicating and giving speeches, don't they?

I remembered reading something about that. It's a summery of a book called "Say It Like Obama, The Power of Speaking with Purpose and Vision".

Enjoy the summery here:
http://www.bizsum.com/articles/art_SayItLikeObama.php

It sounds good to have such powerful skill ;)

Book: Say It Like Obama, The Power of Speaking with Purpose and Vision
Author: Shel Leanne
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Books, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-07-161589-1

Out Seeing The Fields

2009-05-25T22:41:00.002+03:00

Briskly rising to the sky
Cold clouds rushing past
Flying hopes to never land
Light Streatching out my hand

Out seeing the fields
What is a dream
And can you tell me what is real?

Everyone else is home in bed,
And I’m out here lost in my own head,
Out seeing the fields

Freeze crystal on the bridge
Trees frozen diamond leaves
Ice stiffening the wheat
Wind underneath my feet

I only feel close to you when I’m under open sky
I only feel guided when I’m free to question why
Only when I smell the earth upon my face,
will I ever be free to fly from this place

Morning wings against the ledge
Frost trees painted on the glass
Snow covering the streets
Home warm beneath my sheets

Song For: Dawud Wharnsby Ali
Album: Out Seeing The Fields

Because You Loved Me.. My Freinds

2009-05-03T12:19:00.008+03:00

I was googling for some friendship quotes, when I found this amazing lyrics. I found it expressing what I wished to say to my special and closed friends.

I loved its words so much, then I realized that it's one of Celine Dion's songs :D

It's really amazing that all human kinds, regardless of their culture, faith, believes, or whatever, have some great common feelings that appreciated most of all..

It's really amazing that Allah blesses you with such an outstanding gift that's called..

True Friend

It's really amazing that Allah blesses you not only one True Friend.. but they are more than True Friend..

To my Best Ever Friends...
To the Friends of My Life...
I detected this song for You...

For all those times you stood by me
For all the truth that you made me see
For all the joy you brought to my life
For all the wrong that you made right
For every dream you made come true
For all the love I found in you
I'll be forever thankful baby

You're the one who held me up
Never let me fall
You're the one who saw me through..
Through it all

You were my strength
When I was weak
You were my voice
When I couldn't speak
You were my eyes
When I couldn't see

You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach
You gave me faith 'coz you believed

I'm everything I am
Because you loved me

You gave me wings and made me fly
You touched my hand I could touch the sky
I lost my faith, you gave it back to me

You said no star was out of reach
You stood by me and I stood tall
I had your love I had it all
I'm grateful for each day you gave me

Maybe I don't know that much
But I know this much is true
I was blessed because I was loved by you

You were always there for me
The tender wind that carried me
A light in the dark
Shining your love into my life

You've been my inspiration
Through the lies you were the truth
My world is a better place
Because of you

I'm everything I am
Because you loved me

My Best Ever Friends :)
Love U All For Allah's Sake

It's Your Ship (2)

2009-04-22T22:10:00.003+02:00

(You can read part 1 here)

Create a Climate of Trust
The best way for an organization to succeed is to give the employees all the responsibility they can handle and then stand back. Trusting your employees to do their job well sustains the company. When people start trusting each other more and more, they stop questioning motives and start to work as one unit.

You should be aware that people are sensitive to your actions and reactions. If they see that you are the type of leader that gives up on someone easily, they will think that there is no room for redemption. If they see you, however intervene to help someone who is worth the effort, they will be reassured.

If people feel more secure, they are more willing to take risks. After all, they trust that you will support them. Trusting your employees gives them a positive attitude about the organization.

Look for Results not Salutes
Encourage the people in your organization to be more result-oriented by opening their minds to new ideas. Encourage them to use their imagination to find new ways of doing things. Your employees must learn how to take the initiative.

People who always say “yes” or agree with the higher-ups or top executives all the time are dangerous to the organization. These employees tend to mask problems until it is too late to solve it.

Create a culture where your staff is comfortable enough to say what is wrong or suggest reforms when they feel that something can be improved.

Great leaders are not afraid of criticisms and are open to the ideas and opinion of his staff. Make your people feel that they can speak freely and that you respect them. If you do this, you will earn their loyalty, trust and respect.

Take a chance on a promising sailor. Give people second chances especially if you see potential in him. He might just surprise you with outstanding results.

Go Beyond Standard Procedure
If a rule doesn't make sense, break it carefully. Remember, there is always room for improvement but think ideas thoroughly before implementing it.

Innovation and progress are realized when you go beyond standard operating procedures. Sometimes, you have to look for new ways to handle old tasks and find new approaches to new problems.

Good leaders strengthen their organization by building their people and helping them feel good about themselves and their jobs. When this happens, morale and productivity is improved which translates to increased profit for the company.

It's Your Ship

2009-04-21T09:30:00.003+02:00

Encourage and Respect Your Staff
A challenge for every organization is to attract, retain and motivate employees. If a company succeeds in doing so, employees work with more passion, energy, and enthusiasm. This translates to an increase in productivity and more profit for the company.

Research indicates that low pay or salary is only the fifth on the list of reasons why employees change jobs. The top four reasons are:
1. Not being treated with respect or dignity.
2. Prevented from making an impact on the organization.
3. Not being listened to.
4. Not being rewarded with more responsibility.

You must assume that everyone wants to do well. It is then important that you give your employees the space and confidence they need to do their jobs. Do not just bark out orders and expect them to follow. Give everyone the trust and respect they deserve.

Leadership focuses on encouraging people not only to find better ways to do their jobs, but also to enjoy their work. A leader's “job” is to create a climate that enables employees to unleash their potential. If you give your people the right tools and the right environment, they can achieve wonders.

A good leader knows when to stand up and be accountable for his mistakes. If your crew sees that you take responsibility for your actions, they too will follow suit. It is far more beneficial to make sure that a mistake never happens again, than to find someone else to put the blame on.

Communicate Purpose and Meaning
One of the factors to being a great leader is that he must listen to people. If someone approaches you, give him your full, undivided attention. Doing so tells the person that you respect him and that he is important.

The secret to a successful management of any organization is to be able to articulate a common goal that inspires people to work hard together. Proper, effective and open communication of goals, rules, instructions and expectations can spell a difference. The more people know what your goals are, the better results you can achieve.

Freedom Creates Discipline
Silence, lies and arrogance creates an atmosphere that poisons creativity and productivity. Give your people the freedom to speak up. If they fear that you will shoot down their suggestions or that you are not open to criticisms, they will be afraid to give you their suggestions or point out mistakes and problems that can prove to be costly to your organization. Empower your crew to take action and to think and act on their own. Teach them that they should not afraid to speak up.

Book Title: It's Your Ship
Author: Captain D. Michael Abrashoff
Publisher: Warner Books
Date of Publication: 2002
ISBN: 0-446-52911-7

القـــادة رواد الحـــرية

2009-03-27T16:16:00.004+02:00

Creativity Thoughts

2009-03-25T20:05:00.005+02:00

"There's nothing called 'you are not creative', everyone is creative. The point is that some choose to believe that they are creative, while others believe not!! You are what you think!"

This is one of most inspiring quotes that made a huge change in my life. If you seen my latest promo, you'd find that it was Eng. Tarek Sakr one.

Today, I found my friend Amira Aboulrous has tagged me in one of her notes at Facebook, and found it so inspiring. That's why I asked for her permission to add it here in my spot.

Here's what Amira had wrote:
Although some people are creativity gifted, there are some techniques that anyone can follow to promote his/her creativity.

One of these techniques is "paradise". Paradise technique states that you should Dream and then Solve. When you are thinking about a creative product, you should dream about all features that this product should be supplied with and then solve (think how to make all these dream features work).

TED.com has developed a device that is unveiling the "Sixth Sense", this device is the most creative device that I have recently seen.

This is a video link for the device,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=421jDx4ROZg

Thanks to Eng.Tarek Sakr who gives creativity lectures to our team at Kinematechs, and to Ahmed Elaraishy who send me a link to this video.

PS: Amira and Ahmed were my work-mats at Kinematechs, and Eng Tark is the CEO.

M U S L I M

2009-03-23T22:36:00.004+02:00

Say: M-U-S-L-I-M
I'm so blessed to be with them...

One billion strong, all year long,
Prayers to Allah even in Hong Kong
Can never be wrong if you read the Qur'an
Cause it's never been changed since day one.

Others may brag, say that we lag,
But they don’t know all the power we had
The power we had, the power we have
So Muslimoon don’t you ever be sad

Take many looks, go read their books,
You'll see all the facts that your friends overlooked,
So always be proud, you can say it out loud
I am proud to be down with the Muslim crowd!

They look at me strangely
Like I emit some type of energy
That draws Kafirs - disbelievers towards me
Thinking to themselves what makes him different then me
Is it the hair, the clothes or maybe the food he eats,

Don’t know about you, I know about me,
I'm proud to be rolling Islamically
Everywhere I see, even on tv,
People talking trash about the way I be
But what they all hate, is if we get great
Cause we're the only ones with our heads on straight

Don’t ever frown, or your head looking down,
If you read the Qur'an you're the best in the town
Y'all have doubt say- we have no clout
But-within-a-few years see how we've come about
Were back on the scene, The number-one deen,
I'm proud to be down with the Muslimeen!

Say: M-U-S-L-I-M
I'm so blessed to be with them..

Song for: Native Deen
Album: Not Afraid To Stand Alon

PS: This is only parts of the song, not all of it

What To Do If You Make A Big Mistake

2009-03-18T22:49:00.003+02:00

Have you ever been in a situation that someone trusted you doing some job for him/her, then you mistakenly messed it up?!!

I hope you never find yourself in a similar situation, but if you do, here are some tips you may take. I read them since quit some time on TechRepublic.com, and I found them very helpful

If possible, come up with a plan to fix the problem

Don't just walk away and wash your hands of the situation. If you caused the problem, you are responsible for coming up with the plan to resolve it. The plan needs to address the actions that need to occur, the people who need to take them, and the amount of time you think the actions will take.

Come clean with your boss
Trying to cover things up rarely works. It's important that you be in control of the message. So as hard as it will be, you should summon up your strength, take a deep breath, and go talk to your boss.

Let the boss know about that plan
In this situation, and in fact at any other time, never to go to the boss with just a problem. Go with a solution as well. In this case, go with the plan you developed and show the boss that, to at least some degree, you're in control.

Tell the affected parties
Let those affected by your mistake know what happened, but spare the technical details for now. Instead, focus on how the situation affects them. Most important, offer any workarounds you can. Ask for their suggestions as well.

Don't blame others
You're no longer in grade school. Trying to blame other people makes you look unprofessional, diminishing the opinion that others have of you. Conversely taking responsibility and admitting your mistake can win you respect.

Stop looking back
Learning from the past can help prevent repeat mistakes. However, don't confuse learning from the past with dwelling on the past. The latter involves endless self-recrimination and often self-pity, neither of which helps resolve the situation. If you find yourself dwelling on the mistake in this manner, stop it right now and read the next tip.

Prepare and issue a "lessons learned" document
"Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it. Documenting the mistake, and the steps taken to resolve it, are key in this regard. In doing so, be sure to cover the conditions that led to the mistake, the steps taken to correct it, and the measures taken to prevent its recurrence.

Apologize to those affected
Mistakes often cost others in lost time and productivity and hence frustrate them. Consequently, even if you solve the problem, the people who were affected by it might still be upset if you never acknowledge that frustration. Taking a second to apologize will go a long way toward restoring you to good graces. By doing so, you show you appreciate what they had to go through.

Put the best face possible on what happened
Everyone focuses on the negative effects of a problem. However, can you find any good things, no matter how small, that resulted from this problem? One of the most useful concepts I've learned is that of "reframing" the situation, that is, to change the way a person looks at it.

In this case, reframing the problem might take the following form:
• Yes, a problem occurred.
• Yes, the system was unavailable.

BUT the good news is:
• It happened during a slow time.
• It identified issues we need to address elsewhere in other systems.

Of course, in offering these arguments, it's helpful if you can do so with a straight face.

وأنــا في طــريـــــقي

2009-03-10T08:31:00.007+02:00

رغم انها مش اول أغنية سمعتها بتتكلم عن الموضوع دا. إلا أنها ابدعهم ، سواء كانوا بالعربية او الاجنبية

بجد اغنية قمة في الابداع خصوصا الكلمات و اللحن، لانهم بيوصلوا المعني والرسالة بابداع

من الاخر: انا بحبها جدا

اداء: حمزة نميرة
ألبوم: احلم معايا

Connect 2 Success 4 Opening Movie

2009-03-08T21:47:00.001+02:00

Connect 2 Success 4 Promo

2009-03-03T17:05:00.000+02:00

Waiting For You
In FCI-CU
El-Shafeey Hall
Saturday, 7th March, 2009
@ 10:30 am

You Just Need To Believe - Kung Fu Panda

2009-02-20T17:15:00.006+02:00

Kung Fu Panda is an Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated and 11 Annie Award-winning 2008 American animated comedy blockbuster. It was produced by DreamWorks Animation's studio.

Its story may looks a little bit tradition and classical. But what I liked about it most was the focus on the parts related to the believes of the characters. The film doesn't highlight the "battle" between the good and the bad, and the victory of the good at the end, as much as it highlights the change in the characters faith and believes.

This scene is one of my most favorites.

Shifu: Master, master ... I have ... It's... It's very bad news!
Oogway: Ah Shifu, there is just news. There is no good or bad.
Shifu: Master, your vision... your vision was right. Tai Lang has broke out of prison. He's on his way.
Oogway: That's a bad news!!! If you don't believe that the Dragon Warrior can stop him.
Shifu: The panda?! Master, that panda is not the Dragon Warrior. He's even not meant to be here! It was an accident!!
Oogway: There are no accidents.
Shifu: Yes I know. You've said that already... twice.
Oogway: My friend, the panda will never fulfill his destiny, nor you yours until you let go of the illusion of control.
Shifu: Illusion?
Oogway: Yes. Look at this tree, Shifu, I cannot make it blossom when it suits me nor make it bear fruit before its time.
Shifu: But there are things we can control. I can control when the fruit will fall, I can control where to plant the seed. That is no illusion, Master!
Oogway: Ah, yes. But no matter what you do, that seed will grow to be a peach tree. You may wish for an apple or an orange, but you will get a peach.
Shifu: But a peach cannot defeat Tai Lung!
Oogway: Maybe it can, if you are willing to guide it, to nurture it, to believe in it.
Shifu: But how? How? I need your help, master.
Oogway: No, you just need to believe. Promise me, Shifu, promise me you will believe.
Shifu: I'll... I'll try.
Oogway: Good! My time has come. You must continue your journey without me.
Shifu: Wh.. What do you..?! Master, you can't leave me!!
Oogway: You must believe.

There's another scene that I admire. It's the one between Po - the panda - and his father, when the father said:
"The secret ingredient is... nothing! There is No secret ingredient. It's just YOU!"

"To make something special you just have to believe it's special."

And some other lines that I love:
"One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it."

Wings Against My Window

2009-02-18T17:14:00.004+02:00

Wings against my window
Are they birds or are they angels,
Waking me for worship
At Fajr, before dawn?

Wings against my window
Are they birds or are they angels,
Singing me from slumber?
Soon night will be gone

I hear sparrows whistle
Making the Adhan
I hear their words telling me I am a lazy man
"Come fast to pray", they say,
"You will find success that way
Stand up now from where you lay
This is the best time of the day"

My heart, it wants to wake up
My body wants to sleep
The morning air is brisk and cool
My bed is warm and deep

Birds, they call me to the way,
"Stand before Allah to pray!
Kiss the dawn and greet the day!"
But dreams, they just get in the way

Song For: Dawud Wharnsby Ali
Album:Colors of Islam

Hard To Learn... Easy To Remember

2009-02-01T14:28:00.005+02:00

The secret of life is to make the best of whatever comes along.

Go in search of knowledge and experience. Let your questions and your answers reconcile.

Do your best to remember that the best kind of learning curve is an educated smile.

Share your magic with the people who share your memories.

To really know what success means, earn it. Don't rely on some elevator to get you there. The higher the floor you want to reach, the more important it is to take the stairs.

The easiest lessons to remember are the ones you learn the hard way!

Appreciate the little things that make each day unique and special.

We Will Not Go Down

2009-01-18T11:44:00.001+02:00

A blinding flash of white light
Lit up the sky over Gaza tonight
People running for cover
Not knowing whether they're dead or alive

They came with their tanks and their planes
With ravaging fiery flames
And nothing remains
Just a voice rising up in the smoky haze

We will not go down
In the night, without a fight
You can burn up our mosques and our homes and our schools
But our spirit will never die
We will not go down
In Gaza tonight

Women and children alike
Murdered and massacred night after night
While the so-called leaders of countries afar
Debated on who's wrong or right

But their powerless words were in vain
And the bombs fell down like acid rain
But through the tears and the blood and the pain
You can still hear that voice through the smoky haze

We will not go down
In the night, without a fight
We will not go down
In Gaza tonight

Song for: Michael Heart

Forever Palestine

2009-01-17T19:49:00.007+02:00

Mother don’t cry for me
I am heading off to war
God almighty is my Armour and sword
Palestine, Forever Palestine

Children being killed for throwing stones in the sky
They say to their parents "don’t worry, God is on our side"
Palestine, Forever Palestine

Mother don’t worry when they come for us at night
Surely they’ll be sorry when God puts them right
Tell me why they’re doing what was done to them
Don’t they know that God is with the oppressed and needy
Perished were the nations that ruled through tyranny
Palestine, Forever Palestine

Children of Palestine are fighting for their lives
They say to their parents, "we know that Palestine is our right"
They to say to their parents, "we’ll fight for what is right"
They say, "not to worry! God is on our side"
They say, "we’ll die for Palestine"
Palestine, Forever Palestine

Lyrics & Composition: Sami Yusuf
Album: Without You

Future

2009-01-15T12:15:00.006+02:00

When all else is lost, the future still remains.

When it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened.

A fixed image of the future is in the worst sense a historical.

We should all be concerned about the future because we will have to spend the rest of our lives there.

Fear not for the future, weep not for the past.

Morning comes whether you set the alarm or not.

Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.

Learn the past, watch the present, and create the future