12.31.08
Chemistry in the REAL world (II)
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
(I need a better series title)
This post will be a bit for history orientated and story learners. (Hey, I want to appeal to different crowds.)
How Chemistry affected the world socially and politically:
Marie Curie was of Polish descent and a French citizen. Women’s rights at her time were very minimal and she was not accepted into a university. She taught at an illegal one and fought to do research in chemistry and physics, even though she was a woman. She discovered polonium and information of radioactivity, she not only helped broaden the vast plethora of scientific knowledge, but she added to the crack in the glass ceiling of women’s rights in Europe and helped change the political context of her time. Women soon were allowed in universities and be scholars and part of it was in thanks to Marie Curie’s discovery for chemistry.
Chemistry affecting social and economical problems while being an issue of ethics that human beings face: Read the rest of this entry »
Book Review: Candide, by Voltaire
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
I had actually read Candide a while back and I found this draft on my blog so I redid it for you all.
Candide, by Voltaire
For friends of mine, I actually named a character in my book after Candide because I found the book struck me.
The first time you read it, you may get a laugh out of all the things Voltaire criticizes. (You MUST read this book with foot notes to understand half the humor. Get the Barnes and Noble copy.) But the second time I found it is very thought provoking. I think that is why I like satires–you can read them at least in two different ways and then some more. Read the rest of this entry »
Sufi Quotes!
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum!
I have been reading my books and I found some of the most amazing Sufi poems/quotes/proverbs that I HAD to share. (I’ll add to the list as I continue reading.) I hope you enjoy them and get closer to Allah swt! (Oh some of the quotes are from the internet, but these quotes are meant for educational purposes as I can imagine the speakers would want us to learn from them.)
Open to me, so that I may open.
Provide me Your inspiration
So that I might see mine.
-–Rumi
I searched for God and found only myself. I searched for myself and found only God.
-–Sufi Proverb
There wouldn’t be such a thing as counterfeit gold if there were no real gold somewhere.
-–Sufi Proverb
If you make intense supplication
and the timing of the answer is delayed,
do not despair of it.
His reply to you is guaranteed;
but in the way He chooses,
not the way you choose,
and at the moment He desires,
not the moment you desire.
–Ibn Ata’llah (I need to do a seperate post for him) Read the rest of this entry »
Chemistry in the REAL world (I)
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum!
I want to do a mini series on how Chemistry and learning Chemistry can be learning about the world (not just medicine and environmental related issues) and about Islam. Often education is not taken seriously and is considered completely independent from the world we live in. So I will talk about bits of chemistry in different posts.
Stoichiometry
The moles of the reactants and the products are equal. Or as the cliche saying goes: a reaction causes an equal and opposing reaction. Slaves were not given an inch of power in the U.S. because slave owners were afraid it would be used against them. And guess what? They did. There are wars and people hating others around the world and just as there is hate, there are peace seeking people who love others who try to fight back. Read the rest of this entry »
12.29.08
Today’s Words of Wisdom #8
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
I overheard two people talking (is it overhearing if I am standing next to them and they are looking at me while talking? I don’t know) and I had to put it on my blog.
One person said something that reminded me of Plato:
“Be kind and love everyone you meet because for all you know, they can be carrying the burden of the world.” Read the rest of this entry »
Book Review: Emma, by Jane Austen
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
I know it has been a long time since I have put up a book review, but I came across Emma the other day and I thought about doing a review on it.
Emma, by Jane Austen
Emma is a lighthearted book about a matchmaker, Emma Woodhouse and how she pairs up people for marriage that look like good couples, but then they start to run into crazy problems. Soon enough, Emma has to start thinking about her own martial situation… and I will leave it there. The book is a satire that makes fun of social nuances of the Victorian/Regency period and also some of human nature. Emma is perhaps one of the ‘lighter’ books in Austen’s series, both in tone and characters. Emma Woodhouse is a bit of a spoiled but somewhat lovable faulted heroine. Read the rest of this entry »
A Question? Barriers
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
I was having a discussion with someone until we both came across an interesting question:
—
What is the single greatest barrier between an individual and God? Read the rest of this entry »
My Epiphanies (XI)
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
***I will like to make it clear that I am probably pursuing a religious studies major, but I will *HAVE* to get another major before graduating because there are no jobs with a bachelor’s in religious studies. Thank you.***
I draw hope from all the wrong places. Entering college, I did not have the idea that I would pursue a religion and theology (now religious studies) major until I got all the stupidest questions about Islam.
Ex:
Why are women always oppressed in Islam? –>LOADED QUESTION, I REPEAT, LOADED QUESTION–the question already makes the assumption women are oppressed, whereas the question should be stated–Why do women *appear* to be oppressed or are women oppressed in Islam?
Doesn’t Jihad mean ‘holy war’? –>No. Jihad means ’struggle.’ It is normally a struggle for God, but technically the word’s definition can fit for almost any kind of struggle from doing your homework to saving someone’s life.
etc. etc.
But first I was upset with all the bogus questions, but then I thought–at least people express an interest. Even if they may asked the most biased, loaded, miso-Islamic questions, it is a question. And I have always learned that through questions is a hidden hope. Hope for change, hope for clearer future. I still argue if that is completely true, but it gave me hope to help others through interfaith studies.
But that is still not the real topic of the post. The real topic is: what is it that propels me, and a load of other people, to pursue something for reasons of hope? Why change? Why world peace? Read the rest of this entry »
12.28.08
Islamic Quotes II
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
This is my next list of Islamic quotes. I like my first list the most, but I am finding it hard to find a good translation and I didn’t finish my Imam Al-Ghazali books. (Cough, cough, they are amazing, cough, cough.) Sorry if there are any repeats, but I do love Islamic quotes a lot! (I’ll add more in the next couple days insha’ Allah.) I hope you benefit from these too.
The company of a good friend is like an owner of musk; if you don’t buy anything, you will get the smell of it.
The company of a bad friend is like the blacksmith’s bellows; if you are not affected by its black dirt, you will be touched by its smoke.
–Prophet Muhammed (saw)
Everyone who is taken by death asks for more time, while everyone who still has time makes excuses for procrastination.
–Ali Ibn Abi Talib RA
Everyone who is being overtaken by death asks for more time.
While everyone who still has time make excuses for procrastination.
–Ali RA
Knowledge is my companion, it is with me wherever I go. My heart is its container, not the bookshelf.
–Ali RA
Indeed the whole world is imagination. Only He [Allah] is the real in Reality. Whoever understands this knows the secrets of the spiritual path.
–Ibn Arabi
A calamity that makes you turn to Allah is better for you then a blessing which makes you forget the remembrance of Allah.
–Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah Read the rest of this entry »
12.18.08
Tao Te Ching Wisdom 33
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamu Alaikum,
I have been reading different books and one I have decided to reread (for the fourth time) is Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tzu. It is the primary scripture for followers of Taoism. I find it very interesting compared to the Old and New Testament. I read one chapter that I loved and wanted to share. (I am looking for a better translation) I think there are many Islamic elements in it:
Wisdom 33
Knowing others is wisdom.
Knowing oneself is enlightenment. Read the rest of this entry »
