Monthly Archives: January 2016

Terminology

Man and Spirituality: Comment 1

This is one of my comments to a recent write up by Dr. Choudhary.

In his writing, attempting to build a formal system, an axiomatic one trying to explain the nature of man and his spirituality he formed the phrase:

Axiom 1. Man exists as an entity in the universe.

This is quite important, because we assume we exist, it is a self-aware feeling, but he is talking outside of our Selves, man is an entity as is moon or a molecule of hydrogen billions of light years away.

To this I like to propose to add, the term amplitude:

Man exists as an entity with amplitude in the universe.

Meaning entities exist in the universe with different amounts of amplitude! There are gradations of strength of existence for entities in our universe.

Example: An electron could exist for billions of years, photons similarly, but we as humans last only a few decades!

I might be bold and re-write my version of Dr. Choudhary’s Axiom:

Man amplitudes as an entity in the universe.

Make amplitude into a verb, amplitudes as in does have some amplitude.

Allah’s existence has infinite or absolute (Mutlaq) amplitude. All else finite and vitiated in amplitude.

Dara

News

Egypt’s Uprising, 5 Years Later & Egypt Russian industrial zone in Suez

Salaam Everone

On this day five years ago, tens of thousands of Egyptians flooded into Cairo’s Tahrir Square.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/01/25/464290769/a-look-at-egypts-uprising-5-years-later

Remember? today there is no whimper of that specially by Egyptians.

So what happened? What was the purpose for that fake upraising, who was behind the manufactured turmoil:

https://www.rt.com/business/330023-russia-egypt-suez-canal/

The decision to build the Russian industrial zone in Egypt was reached by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi in 2014.

When you go to a gathering of Muslims or in the mosque or some community center and bearded men and veiled women cry the verses of Qur’an for Jihad to kill your neighbor and his woman and children, be sure you are with Munafiqun (Male Hypocrites) and Munafiqat (Female Hypocrites), Arab Iranian Pakistani American convert Indian …

Equally when you are approached by Facebook, US presidents and congressmen trumpeting the virtues of democracy for Muslims, you are again with the hypocrites and liars.

Person who cares for you and your family, will not ask you to kill your neighbor under the banner of Jihad nor democracy. He or she would advise you to better your neighborhood, educate the children in your community, build and cultivate.

 

Behold:

http://metro.co.uk/2011/02/21/egyptian-man-names-his-child-facebook-640039/

An Egyptian man holding a sign thanking Facebook for the uprising! Can you imagine the CEO and shareholders of Facebook laughing their hearts out while planning their IPO! While this penniless Egyptian promoted their stocks to investors who have no care for Egypt nor Muslims!

 

facebookidiot

 

what  this woman wearing hijab wants from the religion of Islam?

Posing for camera painting the corporate logo of an American firm i.e. Facebook!? No thoughts, no shame! Mockery of Prophet Muhammad and Islam.

facebookidiot2

 

Russians who financed  the Facebook’s seed money, a gigantic one at that, propped Facebook in Egypt to bring in the current regime to win Egypt back and move into Suez. Does this man think Facebook has anything to with any justice.

facebookidiot3

We Muslims are not even worthy of the word ‘pawns’, ‘clowns’ male and female, poking fun at the Prophet with our beards and hijabs killing our own brothers and sisters promoting American publicly traded corporations so we appear in some web page, or 6 o’clock news.

Dara

 

 

 

Grammar, Terminology

Bismillahi vs. Billahi

Salaam Shakir, you had asked for the difference between Billahi and Bismillahi:

Research source: Ma’ani Al-Huruf by Rommani

Remark: This is a short memorandum to address the difference but a more detailed treatise could be written if there is interest. The research is quite involved and requires much effort to present.

A. Ba sound in Billahi indicates a Qasam (Oath)

B. Ba sound Bismillahi is a declaration of commencement a form of Dhikr (Remembrance)

The two differ significantly.

Qasam (Oath) is uttered when the speaker needs to render the veracity of a statement made by him i.e. immense personal belief in that statement (‘Aqida firm belief), and do so by mention of another statement which is held dear/noble/true by the listener or by himself e.g. On my children’s soul!

Therefore Billahi is a Qasam (Oath) you use it when you want to tell me convince me something you believe 100% or something you will do or did for real, and you mention Allah’s name after the Ba sound, then I know you are telling the truth.

On the other hand, Bismi is a standing phrase the Arab used to commence an offering e.g. offer something to a noble or idol by using Ba sound to commence the offering juxtaposing the name of the noble or idol after Ba sound, so he would say Bismi so and so I offer  this sacrifice… commencing slaughtering the animal  or bring some gift closer and so on.

Since the advent of the Prophethood of Muhammad peace be upon him, the term is almost exclusively used for Allah’s names in particular Rahman and Rahim, thus no idols or nobles names allowed.

Dara

 

 

 

Books, Terminology

Categoreal Scheme vs. Axiomatic

Salaam to Dr. Choudhary and David and everyone

Axioms are used with a set of systemic objects e.g. predicates Booleans and inferences to compose larger and larger statements from smaller atomic finite set of Axioms, the latter as smallest atomic unit of truth. And then focus on examining if these larger and more complex statements are true or false.

Alfred North Whitehead studied the history of European philosophy, its achievements and failures, and endeavoured to replace the concept of axioms with something else, that did not require to be true or false.

Example in our times is the axiomatized theory of Evolution. It is now known the processes of evolution shaped life, therefore the theory of Evolution is proved to be correct. However it is also well known that not all processes of life were evolved, and there is a problem! The latter means theory of Evolution is  incorrect and therefore false i.e. disproved!

Then the proponents of theory of Evolution argue by all means possible, at times on thin ice, to refute the lack of evolved processes in life, to make sure the axiomatic theory of Evolution is 100% intact insofar as 100% truth, thus we plunge into classical European failure of philosophical thought which we all know as Dark Ages.

Categoreal Scheme does not require atomic statements i.e. axioms to be either true or false.

Categoreal Scheme provides a blueprint, for some entity, to be described in most general possible forms and ways.

An actual entity is then the instantiation of a particular category, which describes quite well to some gradation of competence.

The thinker of Categoreal Scheme ‘restricts‘ the thoughts to the encapsulated blueprint within the category and investigates which actual entities fit the blueprint of the category and which do not, as opposed to verify truth and veracity of statements.

Restriction of thoughts are then accompanied by imaginative leap which are something other than thoughts and rational, and thus imagine to expand the boundaries of mentation limited by the restriction of thoughts to the blueprint of the category.

Example: Category of Car:

i. Self-propelled

ii. Contains the energy for motion

iii. Has cavity and openings (doors) to carry load

iv. Roves on particular devices pressing against the ground (wheels)

Car is not true or false! Its blueprints are not concerned about truth.

However if we restrict our thoughts to this Category of Car we quickly notice that there are many instantiations of this category e.g. GMC truck, BMW and so on.

And yet we also discover that there are entities that do not exactly instatiate the category of car e.g. motorcycle or sail-boat. We need to find those misfits other Categoreal Schemes. Motorcycle or sail-boat does not make Category of Car false! BMW does not make the Category of Car true!

Example: Category of Evolution:

i. Every organism has a predecessor

ii. Every organism mutates to a new version slightly different

iii. Every organism mutates innovations due to environmental pressures

iv. Every organism loses innovations of iii if no longer required

v. ii – iv are gradual

We restrict our thoughts to viruses and clearly see them as instantiation of Category of Evolution. There is no truth or falsehood about the Category itself or about the virus, it is about instantiation and fitting the blueprint.

We loosen up the restrictions of our thoughts to plants and birds and see clearly that that they are instantiation of Category of Evolution.

However there is no truth or falsehood about any of it, God included. Category of Evolution does not make Category of God false, and vice-a-versa.

Then we restrict our thoughts to flowering plants and we find out that flowers do not fit the blueprint of the Category of Evolution!

This lack of instantiation does not have any truth or falsehood about the Category of Evolution. Perhaps flowering plants require a new Categoreal Scheme to fit better blueprints.

Imagination: Categoreal Scheme is free of meaning and application if the restriction of thoughts to its blueprint is not billowed at by the torrents of imagination! It is the very tumults of an imaginative mind that fuels the meaning and progress of Categoreal Scheme.

Alfred North Whitehead, may his voyage be eased and beautiful, innovated/promoted Categoreal Scheme to do away with absurd fallacies and even more absurd proofs! Hence Dark Ages which is upon us in so called modern times.

 

Dara

 

Books

Process and Reality: Alfred North Whitehead

2 Comments

Salaam to everyone

As a part of research and learning to study the recent post by Dr. Choudhary, I recommend that we also read Process and Reality:

http://files.lossofgenerality.com/Proc_reality.pdf

This in particular contains his concepts and definitions.

This work being one of the most profound achievements of Western thought, has gone completely forsaken, to the point that some American university faculties were telling me that there is almost an unspoken ban on this book for teaching and research.

We need to caution against reading and digesting RETAIL spirituality and philosophical thought i.e. reading materials sold in large quantities by American corporate publishers.

We need to read all works of all sorts by all authors to find the best of thoughts, not what board of directors of publishing companies in US consider as Western thought and philosophy.

I look forward to reading Dr. Choudary work and will make comments in coming days, much appreciate his sharing.

 

Dara

 

 

 

Question, Uncategorized

On Bismillah

1 Comment

Salaam Sayyidi and Salaam to everyone.

I have a question regarding Bismillah.
It is mentioned in this pattern:”Bi-Ism-Allah”(With/by/by means of Allah’s Name, Ism).
And not “Bi-Allah” (by means of/with/by/in Allah).

I would like to know about the significance of Name.

Is there answers available for the usage of this pattern?

Tafsir

Tafsir (Exegesis) 28:83. As for that realm in the hereafter, We grant it [only] to those

2 Comments

The Muslim, the Christian and the Jew today yearn to lead and subjugate the servants of Allah under the banner of their religion or byproducts of their societies e.g. democracy or capitalism or racial supremacy. None of that is in congruence with Abrahamic faith and traditions of their prophets.

 

28:83 As for Ka(you) La(that, distant) realm in the hereafter, We grant it [only] to those who do not seek to exalt themselves on earth, nor yet to spread corruption: for the future belongs to the God-conscious.

تِلْكَ الدَّارُ الْآخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوًّا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فَسَادًا وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

Lexicon:

عُلُوًّا

To have the upper-hand over the people and over the planet (since the verse  mentions to be exalted over the earth).

Examples:

Yearning to be the boss: being the Imam in the mosque, desiring to be the leader, being a governor, a politician.

Wearing a beard or a gown-uniform, ceremonial to create prestige for people to follow you, to listen to you, to do your bidding.

As for the planet, to change her ecological equilibrium and modify her biological systems in order to provide luxuries and excessive consumption or to gain control over people e.g. diverting rivers.

Subjugating people: forcing people to believe or behave certain ways, your ways, under the auspicious of religious guidelines or  democratic ideals but in reality it is nothing but subjugating people to your will.

Fame: yearning to be popular and loved and under the limelight in front of the microphone, rubbing shoulders with the governors and the rich, yearning to be heard and followed.

Supremacy: believing that you are better than others, by your race or religious beliefs or nationality or ethnicity.

Imam Ali said:

Indeed a man is conceited (‘Ujb) even about his shoelace being better than his companion’s shoelace (Translation?)

تفسير تفسير الهدايه إلى بلوغ النهايه/ مكي بن أبي طالب (ت 437 هـ)

وروي عن علي رضي الله عنه أنه قال: إن الرجل ليعجبه من شراك نعله أن يكون أجود من شراك صاحبه، فيدخل في قوله: { تِلْكَ ٱلدَّارُ ٱلآخِرَةُ }.

 

فَسَادًا

Unlawful wealth/provision obtained by hoarding other people’s belongings.

Examples:

Stock Markets: to create phony corporations and securities to cheat the public to invest in paper companies with little economic value.

Military threat to remove the natural resources of other nations:  under the democratic sentiments, or non-existing religious obligations.

Limiting access to natural resources: waging wars for oil or water or sea ports or access to mines.

Limiting access to education: destroying educational infrastructure of nations in order to rob their wealth by easier subjugation.

Nepotism: Under the banner of race or religion or democracy or ideology of any kind to form closed societies to ban others from gaining their fair share.

 

Ti-L-Ka

تِلْكَ

Ti: “This” pointing at something

L: Distance making Ti (This) into That over there or afar

Ka: You i.e. Muhammad (peace be upon).

This verse does not read:

The realm in the hereafter, We grant it [only] to those who do not..

الدَّارُ الْآخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوًّا

It has that Ti-L-Ka at the very beginning because the Prophet is SEEING that realm and her inhabitants, the Arabic verse is rendering an image of that seeing. For that matter some of us could view a visual-sliver of that seeing.

This is not about knowledge this is about seeing.

Ka (you, Muhammad) is a residual presence shared with some of you, in this case a Seer Residual Presence to see the other realm and her inhabitants.

To see to report back to others: subjugating people and taking their wealth for sure divert your voyage to that habitation in the other realm.

You could believe and cover your face and head any which way or say some Arabic words here and there, or chant something or make claims to be the chosen of the God, but you will not have any place in Hereafter, since you subjugate people to your will to have the upper-hand over them.

 

© 2016-2002,  Dara O Shayda