Issue 49 (January - March 2005)

It seems a strange contrast to start a celebration by paying a visit to one’s parents or grandparents in their eternal resting places. But this is exactly what a great majority of Muslims all around the world do on the first day of Islam’s two major religious festivals, eid al-fitr and eid al-adha…

Beauty elevates our hearts, awakens our souls with sweet excitement and appreciation, and then becomes the esthetic of our inner self. This hard-to-describe phenomenon, this sense that is present in our most joyous moments, is beauty. Even though this definition might seem too narrow, it is one int…

The heated debate about whether religion and science are complimentary or not has been raging for years. Several theologians, philosophers, and scientists have put forward different views on this subject. In this article, we focus on the relation between religion and science from the Islamic perspe…

With a rich and varied architecture embodying centuries of history, Istanbul is one of the world’s most celebrated cities. Besides the splendid monuments of its classical, Byzantine, and Ottoman heritage, Istanbul’s cemeteries have also contributed to its renown. Historically, the vast necropolises…

According to a news item that appeared in the middle of 2002, there was a 6% probability that a meteorite measuring 2 kilometers in diameter could hit the Earth on February 1, 2019. At the start of September 2003, in a statement made from the Lincoln Near Earth Object Information Centre, there was…

The story starts in 2000 BC with attempts by the Egyptians and Babylonians to compute π. The Egyptians arrived at (4/3)4 3.1604, while the Babylonians found 25/8= 3.125. The Indians used A10 3.1622 for π 3.1415. These were very good approximations for their time, but they had an error that started…

Said Nursi frames his treatise of the Twenty-Fourth Word in his collection of words on a well known Qur’anic verse that discusses God’s beautiful names. God, there is no god but He; His are the Most Beautiful Names (20:8). Using the metaphor of a tree with branches, Nursi divides his interpretation…

Water is the most abundant substance in our world. It has one of the simplest possible chemical formulas: two hydrogen atoms attached to one oxygen atom (H2O). Yet, it is one of the most anomalous substances known to humanity. We all know that it is essential for life. However, probably because of…

In one of the most comprehensive and intense novels ever written, Jorge Luis Borges launches his story with a scene where a friend is discussing a great idea: “. . .to write a novel in the first person, using a narrator who omits or corrupts what has happened and who runs into various contradiction…

One of the natural conditions that animals struggle with is surviving the freezing cold. Cold weather causes great loss in animal life. In some ways, this phenomenon helps balance the animal population and sustains the ecological system that exists in the world as a manifestation of the perfect kno…

“The things that I fear most for my people are being overweight, sleeping too much, laziness and a lack of deep faith.” 1 Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) Effective time management occurs only when we force ourselves to perform important activities within a plan so that we ca…

Spiders, known to be horrifying animals to many, are recognized by us for their role in the ecological balance. If spiders were to be removed from the natural food chain, and thus, from the ecological balance, an explosion in the flea and insect populations would be inevitable. These masters of hun…

A gold ingot fell into the hands of a pious man and so turned his head that his enlightened mind became gloomy. He passed the whole night in anxious thought, reflecting, “This treasure will suffice me till the end of my life; no longer shall I have to bend my back before any one in begging. I will…

Much has been said on the issue of information sources. Some of the people who have commented on this issue have sometimes been restricted by their knowledge and/or faith, thus they have vocalized different opinions. According to the Islamic perspective, there are three types of information source…

There are numerous translations of Rumi’s poetry into English, but there was still a need for a book on Rumi’s life and personal character in English. Almost all the translators were Westerners who were mere observers of Sufism and the Mevlevi order. “Rumi: A Mevlevi Perspective” stands apart from…