Practising muslim who follows a balanced & moderate path of islam. Prolific reader & able to engage on a wide spectrum of topics. Nature lover & ardent hiker who prefers to be overwhelmed by the openness of mountains, forests & even deserts - spent 5 x days camping in the white desert in northern Egypt ... awesome experience - rather than to be boxed in by the monotonous & claustrophobic existence of city dwelling!! What better time to contemplate & reflect the existence, omnipresence, etc of the "THAT ALL POWERFULL REALITY" then when being engulfed by the beautifull & majestic surroundings of HIS CREATION!! I do "more often than not" put myself in "wandering mode" & have hiked, travelled, trekked via 4x4 quite extensively all over Africa, the Middle East, Far East etc. I tend to by pass big cities & really am in my element in rural & more remote areas learning & experiencing people, traditions, cultures, history, architecture etc. So if you should ever knock at my door & I'm not there ... be assured that "I am drowning myself some where within the bounties of nature" !! I am fiercely loyal to those who has managed to get close to me & much more to those I carry in my heart - loved ones & one or two very close friends - & strive to be fair, honest, gentle & humane to those whom I encounter & interact with on a daily basis. I am very passionate about building & architecture & have skifull competencies in the "diy" dept!! As a rational thinker & problem solver, I do not allow myself to be manipulated, steam rolled or bulldosed intellectually or otherwise. Having said this, let me hasten to say that I am definitely not scared to own up, admit & apologise if I had made a mistake !! If the primary reason for joining a site such as this, is to, find a partner in what the quran refers to as "ma wadda tawwa rahmah" then it would not be inappropriate to share my views regarding the position of women in the realm of the Islamic perspective, but which seem to be so contentious amongst so many, muslim & non muslims alike, all over the world!! The realisation which dawned upon me - I have been seeking, studying, engaging with others since I can remember - a long time ago, is that our women, it does not matter who they are, whether rich or poor, black or white, muslim or non-muslim ... all of them enjoy a phenomenal status as regard the islamic perspective!! They are indeed the mothers of humanity !! In one of many utterings of that illustrious personalty of islam (pbuh) who articulated that "jannah (paradise) lies at the feet of thy mothers". What a tremendous honour had Allah bestowed upon these individuals ... they must then indeed be very special!! And what is the divine instructions to us .. the males of this world ... nothing less than ... that we shall respect, revere, look after them, protect & treat them with kindness compassion, etc, etc!! And then this CREATOR in HIS infinite mercy, in turn, honours the man by placing the well being of our mother's, "at whose feet our jannah lies"... in their hands & under their auspices (ONLY TO BE DONE GOOD TO & NOT TO BE ABUSE IN ANY WAY)!. This CREATOR of ours showers us with HIS mercy & HIS compassion in this way ... should we then not be gratefull slaves in our subservience towards HIM?? I also respect & believe in the inherent goodness of all people & in the universal principles of basic morality & values applicable to all human kind. I have friends from different walks of life, different nationalities, different colours etc ... we have all been created by the same CREATOR!! I take extreme exception to any kind & in whatever form of prejudices, oppression, racism etc. So please keep your distance if you regard yourself as being different or better from other human beings by virtue of, skin pigmentation, belonging to a certain race or group, not from the same locality - be it a village, town, country etc - having studied at or obtained a qualification from a particular institution. All these paraphanalia does not make the man, but rather, the individual needs to make the effort & strive to become somebody in the eyes of others in order to leave behind a legacy of substance. I strongly believe that all human beings are inherently good - the way we were created - & that we are blessed with the ni'mah of free will & with the intellect to choose the path of our own destinies!! So much so that no person is ever too good not to falter & make mistakes, nor so bad not to realise the ills of his ways & strive to reform himself to a level where he elevates himself to become even the best amongst the good!! In view of the afore mentioned, to be judgemental of others, thus becomes a futile exercise which can only breed arrogance of the self that will ultimately give rise to the "I am better than others" syndrome!! I deem myself honoured & fortunate to have been born & bred in South Africa under the heinous & brutal era of "APARTHEID" & to have been witness to the collective arrogance of a handfull , who kept others in bondage & who had the audacity to substantiate their actions in the name of religion!! A system where a small minority, by virtue of the colour of their skin, regarded themselves as superior than the majority & whom they kept in a form of slavery for more than 300 yrs!! This system exposed all thinking, compassionate & humanely concious individuals to engage with each other, forced themselves to assess their situation & come to conclusions which left them with no options other than to work towards the disposition of a system which degrades other human beings to even less than animals. The rest ... as the saying goes ... "is history". But all over the globe our brothers & sisters, muslim & non-muslim alike ... ordinary people like you & I ... all originating from the same source ... are experiencing similar atrocities & more!! As a muslim who enjoys & at the same time strives to live a moral & decent life within the parameters of islam, I am after all said & done, a down to earth individual ... human in all conceivable ways .... equally comfortable in jeans, tackies & a sweater at a BBQ or on a building site as I would be in formal attirement given the occasion. I conduct a halqah which is frequented by youth (university students) where I teach quranic recital & also use this as a forum where pertinent & contemporary issues are discussed. Having said this please take cognisance that I am neither a follower nor do I promote conventional mainstream practices (traditional & cultural) exercised in the name of islam - such as the treatment meted out to women in general (by husbands & males)to name but one & which has no basis in the light of quranic injunction !! Yes !! I agree that this profile is becoming too tedious & somewhat overbearing .... for that I humbly apologise !! Yet there is still much to say about so many aspects on an array of topics ... who do I say it to ?? Such a lot to give ... who do I share it with ?? what do you see ?? If you had indeed come this far in reading my profile ... then I supposed that I had not bored you with a little glimpse of "my perspective of things". I thank you !!
Possessed both inner & outer beauty .. She wants to be part of my destiny as i would be part of hers. Together we will journey the path of life -spiritual & physical- overcoming life's challenges & enhancing our "TOGETHERNESS" with rahmah & mawaddah - mercy & love - on our way to ultimately attain a good space in the akhirah !!
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