by Kanwal Ahmed, MD, Al-Amin Ethics Student, Psychiatry Resident Dr Kanwal Ahmed, a student of Shaykh Amin, takes us to the shores of hope and creativity “beyond colonialism”. This paper summarizes Shaykh Amin’s address delivered at the Islamic Association of Addison on Jumada II 12, 1446 AH (December 13, 2024).   In recent history, many […]

by Dr. Zamir Syed, PhD The following is a delicious exposé of the deficiency in AI as it pertains to dream interpretation. The recent craze and fascination with A.I. is creating a mindset of disengagement from human beings and indeed human interaction. At Darul Qasim, we see the learning and transferring of knowledge as a […]

The command iqraʾ (اقْرَأْ) given to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ at the beginning of Sūrat al-ʿAlaq is frequently translated as a command to “read.” Through the illuminating insights of our ʿulamāʾ, we understand that iqraʾ is more than the act of reading text. It signifies the initiation of recitation, which itself is connected with nūr […]

The epistemological framework by which Muslims derive truth affirms that the quintessential source of truth, without doubt, is revealed knowledge—knowledge in both word and spirit. As Muslims, when defining anything, we lean upon this source to shed light on how we should perceive any creation, whether tangible or intangible. The command to “Read” invites reflection: […]

In both English and Arabic, “to read” is an action that is beyond the common colloquial use of the word. If you were to ask someone what the word means without any context, its likely that they would say it has something to do with combining letters into words. But the meaning is much more […]

This essay aims to contextualize and interpret the command of Allah, Iqra (recite), as presented in Verse 1 of Surah Al-Alaq, the 96th chapter of the Quran. A closer examination of this command highlights underscores the significance of understanding the Quran through the lens ofthe Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Additionally, this essay will […]

In these lectures, Shaykh Amin challenges the popular understanding of the word “iqraʾ” in Sūrat al-ʿAlaq by pointing out that the object of the command is omitted, leaving it to the reader to fill in. He demonstrates the flexibility of the English word “read”, then reflects that flexibility and creativity to the Arabic. He then […]