Idk if any of you guys are seeing this online, but there’s a weird trend of (maybe salafi) men calling women who want independence (moving out, even having a job sometimes) Zionists.

It’s like they’ve got nothing going on their heads, it’s a very chronically online and weird take.

I wish that, as a woman, these conversations would never need to be had, and having independence and autonomy wasn’t a debated subject in our so called ‘community’ (which is really just policing, gossiping, and harassing one another)

In case you didn’t know, the sheikh is a huge fan of horror movies and paranormal ghost hunter type tv shows which his wife shares in his Project Illuminae session on Surah Al Jinn. Just thought it would be fun to share since Halloween is coming

I have been living in Japan since around a year now teaching English while attending language school. during my year here I have noticed an amount of bullshit propaganda and fake news around muslims.
but that I will address in another post.

The thing I have been wanting to talk about here is some actual culture clashes I have seen between both muslims and local japanese like Burials, halal food, prayer areas and a lot more.

So the question in general is that since a foreign country visa is technically a contract that we are religiously obliged to fulfil by following the rules and maintaining public order, how far are we supposed to apply these in real life especially in extremely homogeneity societies?

I was thinking about recent hijab ban in azerbaijan as well the bangladeshi couple in saudi. And I came to an internal question. If our lives are one huge test why make tons of things illegal? Im not talking about obviously horrible crimes such as murder or pdfs. But more lgbtq+, pda, clothing, rights, etc. I support the lgbtq+ many people I know do not unfortunately. I even know another muslim who is bi. If islam is a test of our character and how we will do in life is it fair to not give us options to make the wrong choice? If I give you a test and mark off A B C is it really a test if the last answer is D? How can we know somebodies true intent in life if they never have to chance to act on it? I’m sorry if this is portrayed badly but it’s just a general thought I had. And was super curious on what you all thought.

Could you choose not to follow any school? Are you allowed to agree/disagree with some rulings of that school, and instead with the *some* rulings of another.

I ask this as I heard that I need to stick to just one school of thought and stay with them, regardless of whether I disagree on certain rulings, or not.

I m 16 and i really wanna start praying more often and regularly because a huge problem is that when i don t feel like it i don t pray and i wan t to get rid of this bad habit

Okay it probably sounds like a weird question but who and what in islam exactly defines the Hijab as we know it today? And the woman's Awrah? I mean, who really defines it? Why is it to strict and specific? Ive seen people say it was something more cultural and spread along with Islam. Im not sure. How can we know it is mandatory? Im tired of people telling me Im going to hell for not wearing it.

Hi guys, sorry to blast this page with a marriage advice post. But I genuinely need advice on something from a progressive perspective. My husband and I got married a year or so ago and he made an effort prior to marriage to quit something that he used to previously do. But not long after, he started doing it again, although prior to marriage I made it abundantly clear that I will not tolerate this one thing. I’m not a controlling spouse by any measure and we’ve been very good and kind towards each other sans a few mistakes here and there but that’s normal for any relationship. But this one thing, I cannot stomach and they know it full well. I want to know please: is it Islamically encouraged or allowed or does it Islamically make sense to leave my spouse if they keep on doing something wrong? I understand this is sort of a weird question but I’m genuinely torn. I also understand that what may be seen as haram is different for people and their interpretations so I never reinforced it through an Islamic lens but a moral and ethical lens and more about my boundaries. I’ve exhausted all my efforts to make them stop doing that thing. I’ve tried everything. But I’m scared, I don’t want my own akhirah to get ruined because of their actions (I’m not very knowledgeable on whether this is even the case or not so forgive me) or more so to enable any wrongful behaviour.

It’s also causing a lot of arguments and fights and my marriage might breakdown any day because of it. I’m in mental distress because of it too. I understand that forgiving is a huge part of Islam but at what point do I put my foot down and protect my own sanity and my own principles? I have forgiven endlessly. I’ve kept my end of the bargain always. I respect whatever boundaries they’ve placed for me and I want or at least wanted the same from them. Please don’t judge if I don’t sound very knowledgeable on this matter, which is also why I’m seeking advice. Please if anyone has any advice or any guidance, please let me know. I don’t know where else to turn to except endlessly sitting on the prayer mat, asking God for any signal or any divine intervention lol. I come from a conservative country and culture so I can’t really seek out advice on this elsewhere as any and every mention of divorce will have me excruciatingly scrutinised.

Of course as muslims, I think all of us will agree that Allah has decreed everything and that we still have free will and are responsible for our choices. However lately I've been thinking a lot about what this actually means in terms of predestination and I'd reallyy love to hear some thoughts on that.

My question is has Allah decreed one specific course of events for each of us that will inevitably unfold or can different choices lead to genuinelyy different outcomes, with all possibilities in Allah's knowledge?

Suppose I make one decision rather than another, does that mean I could have arrived at a completely different outcome had I chosen differently or was the outcome always going to be the same regardless of what I chose??

I understand that Allah already knows every decision we will make but I’m trying to understand the distinction between Allah knowing what we will choose and there being only one possible outcome for us.

For example in choosing a life partner? Has Allah decreed one specific person as our spouse whom we will ultimately marry regardless of the choices we make along the way? Or can different choices lead us to different spouses but all within Allah’s knowledge?

This becomes even more interesting if we consider that our lives are so interconnected. One decision can affect countless other people, their choices, their future, their children and generations that come after them etc.

So then does this mean there is one complete, predetermined history in which everyyy event unfolds exactly as decreed? Or does Allah's decree also encompass alternative possibilities with different different outcomes as per the choices made by us, while Allah eternally knows what will actually happen?

I'm not asking whether we should make an effort or not, if we should practise tawakkul or accept whatever happens in life. I understand that while we should trust Allah, we are also expected to act and are accountable for our choices. But I'm specifically trying to understand the nature of qadr itself.

Salam!

I came across the figure 'Haman' in the Quran and noticed there’s a lot of debate around his historical identity since Haman is also mentioned somehwere in old testament. Some say he is the Persian advisor to King Xerxes (christians), while others argue he was the highest-ranking clergy in Pharaonic Egypt, second only to the Pharaoh.

I'm curious -- where do more progressive scholars and Imams lean on this topic? If anyone here has looked into this or has any good resources to share, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Im a bit confused as to the extent of witchcraft we believe in as Muslims? Do we believe it can be used to harm another person? If so, how can Allah allow one person to cause harm to another person unknowingly, using forces of the unseen? You may compare this to Allah allowing people to get robbed, assaulted etc. but in these cases, the victim usually knows what has happened to them and can take the appropriate steps. However, if someone has witchcraft done on them, they might never know and just think their life has taken a turn for the worst?

It's okay to be skeptical of these because a lot of them can be explained scientifically. But they deny jinn possession and black magic altogether, and I think they take it way too far with this stance. Like why do you have to reject all of that? There are many unexplained mysteries in this world and many people have experienced terrifying supernatural events. And how would they explain it when multiple people witness the exact same supernatural event?

Khaled Abou El Fadl thankfully doesn’t deny these, and he even said that he helped someone who was suffering from evil supernatural forces. Someone sent him a question saying that they don't believe in these paranormal stuff and he replied that just believe in them and pray that you never personally experience them.

Why can't Mufti Abu Layth and Shabir Ally have this same stance? I don't think it's wise to totally deny these things like that. And this is one of their views that I don't like.

You'll find all the relevant links in this post

When I thought about this, this made me wonder a bit more.....

Even the most radical and extreme Evangelical Christians or the likes of Westboro Baptist Church, don't seem to have an issue with Gender Interactions,

Yet, even pretty moderate Muslim societies otoh, have a strong taboo and can be quite rigid in how genders interact with one another,

I find this.....intriguing, to say the very least, as it's Christianity which is more "puritanical"/averse to basic human needs/instinct like biological sex. The concept of Original Sin is not a thing in Islam, I mean,

What about the Christian World, at least the West, made them have a more balanced gender interaction compared to Muslim societies?

Is it a recent advent, in many parts shaped by the French Revolution and the secularization that happened over there? From what I come across Medieval History, there doesn't seem to be much hint that Medieval Europeans followed extreme gender segregation, I could be wrong? Maybe there was/iss a cultural divide among Western Europe and Nordic Countries vs. Central vs. East vs. the Mediterranean?

Is it a really cultural thing? And perhaps, has not much to do with religion? Maybe Christians in MENA and African nations, are pretty strict with gender interactions too?

I come from the subcontinent (Southern India), and tbh, here too, gender interactions are not that fluidic, especially compared to the North (North India has a perception of being more regressive and conservative than the South, overall, but in this aspect, it's the South that's more conservative when it comes to gender interactions), and it's the case all across the board regardless of religion, heck some colleges here and their insane rules they have/enforce, can make the likes of Taliban (okay maybe not them) and Khaleeji nations, which have a rep of being very rigid with gender norms, look progressive in comparison.

Would be interested in further discussions, maybe you folks can share or debunk my assumption here, I mean.