ilm – knowledge – yearns to be free

Slideshow: Ashura, the Unique Face of Shia Islam | Religion | FRONTLINE | PBS. The holy day of Ashura marks the martyrdom of Hussain ibn Ali, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad, in a historic seventh century battle. The Battle of Karbala, as it’s known, cemented the schism between Sunni and Shia Muslims that arose from a succession dispute after the prophet’s death.  Every year around Ashura, the media is flooded with images of blood-soaked Shias self-flagellating. But Shias around the world — who make up between 10 to 13 percent of Muslims – observe the month in a myriad of ways.…

There are so many moments in history that I would love to be a part of. To be near the Prophet (SAWS) when he received the first revelation; at Ghadir-e Khumm; at the battle of Siffin; at Karbala; when Imam Jafar (AS) refused to be an Abbasid figurehead; with Hasan-i Sabbah at Alamut; to witness Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah’s (AS) move to consolidate the community again. I think that eventually these stories will be told better. That is the job of the historian. Continued at: I Wish I’d Been There: The Mind of Yazid, the Faith of Hussein « Simerg.

THE CHAMP IS HERE | 30mosques. Being teased about his appearance was tormenting, he said.  Until he was seven years old when an African American woman at school told him something that he still remembers to this day.  “She said ‘You look that way because you’re special,’” he said. “’If God wanted you to be like everybody else and just be normal, he would have made you that way. But he made you look special because you’re supposed to be special. If you’re going to be special, all the stuff you’re going through is training for that.’  “And the thing…