One of the most important technical terms in the Qurʾān and in the traditions of the Family of the Prophet of Islam (S) is ‘ʿaql’. According to them, ʿaql is That by which Ał-Raḥmān is adored and served; and that by which the Gardens [of Paradise] are earned. It is unfortunately very common to translate the word ‘ʿaql’ by...
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Reflecting on walāyah in the middle of Saturday morning traffic in the inner city London. The rain has cleared and the sun has appeared, but the air remains cold. The inner city with its poverty; surrounded by people who don’t know about the divine gift to humanity that is the Ahl al-Bayt (as). What can I do to let them know, in a culture where people...
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From the moment of its entrance into historical time, the event of Ghadīr has been the subject of much theological controversy among Muslims; that is a given. The historical reversion1 of a segment of the Muslim community to the Jāhliyyaḧ system in the wake of the event of al-Ghadīr marked the beginning of a polarization in the Muslim community that...
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The past few years have witnessed a movement of converts to Islam/Walāyah calling themselves “reverts.” The idea, I suppose, is to capture the notion that Islam/Walāyah is not something that one converts to but rather something one returns to. But choosing the word ‘revert’ is like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Yes, the word...
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This post is under development and may not be in its final state Introducing Walayah.org It is a common saying, even a cliché, that Islam is the most misunderstood “religion.”1 Yet it is quite accurate, to the extent that one can argue that the essence of Islam remains a stranger to the world, even to many Muslims. As a comprehensive way of life Islam...
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ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (passed in 661 CE, peace be upon him): Surely Allāh, magnified and exalted, established Islām as the way to the water [of life]: He made its accesses easy for those who arrive at it, and fortified its foundations for the one who wars against it. He made it an honor for the one who receives its walāyah; a safety for the one who...
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