anywhere in the world,the stereotype and,therefore, the prejudice always exist. Jews once was the victim of prejudice in Europe, before itself become the torchbearer of victimisation of others (palestinian people) at present days.In india, anybody from Bihar state becomes the victim of stereotype and prejudice of others. Bihari guys considered the lowest among the low in terms of character and personality. the bihari guys considered by indian people from other states as malicious, cheater, untrustworthy, etc etc. so deep is the prejudice that make the term ‘bihari’ as a specific term for bluffing anybody. e.g. when you are angry to your friend who’d betrayed your trust, you can say in anger “You f*** bihari!the second in rank is bengali or someone who come from west-bengal. so, whenever someone says to you by adding the name ‘bihari’ or ‘bengali’ dont get excited! it’s bluffing and insulting all around.

Obituary

Dr. Martin Lings

Islamic scholar concerned with spiritual crisis

Gai Eaton
Friday May 27, 2005
The Guardian

Martin Lings (Abu Bakr Siraj Ad-Din), who has died aged 96, was a public-school educated Englishman who converted to Islam, spent many years as keeper of oriental manuscripts and printed books at the British Museum, and is best known as the author of a life of Muhammad. Only 10 days before his death, he addressed an audience of 3,000 at the Wembley conference centre on the occasion of the prophet’s birthday; earlier this year, he travelled to Egypt, Dubai, Pakistan and Malaysia.

IMAM Abu Abdullah Muhammad bin Ismaeel bin al-Mughirah al-Bukhari was born on 13th of Shawwal 194 AH in Bukhara. a town in the eastern part of Turkestan. He died on 1 Shawwal 256 AH. at the age of 62 years in a small town near Samarkand, Tadzhikistan.

Works (Books and Compilations)

Imam Bukhari wrote many kitaabs (books) besides Shahih Bukhari (Al Jamius Sahih). Hereunder are some books written by Imam Bukhari

The Origin of the School of Sufism
Sejarah asal mula tarikat/tasawwuf

by Seyedeh Dr. Nahid Angha

The following article written by Seyedeh Dr. Nahid Angha is taken from the journal Sufism: An Inquiry.

In order to understand Sufism and its origin we must briefly touch on the elements of studies that have been undertaken in the hope of understanding Sufism, and so examine the accuracy of the conclusions that scholars have drawn. To do so, the reader should keep in mind a few important caveats while studying the information that has been collected concerning Sufism. Sometimes the lack of truly thorough research, or the difficulties inherent in translating from one language to another, have led to confusion instead of enlightenment.

As a result, Sufism is often only half understood, with that understanding further clouded by interpretations and the biases of commentators. These limitations have made tracing the road to Sufism’s origin difficult, even for accomplished scholars. Even should the scholar choose his sources very carefully, the barrier of language yet remains, an important factor hindering the passage of truth.

There have been many debates concerning the origin of Sufism and how this school of inner knowledge was established. In seeking the spiritual and intellectual ancestry of Sufism, some have looked toward Greek philosophy in general and Platonism especially, some to the Hermetic Christianity of the Gnostics of the late Roman Empire, and others to Buddhism or Yogism. But Sufism, as it has been practiced since its birth, is quite a different school of belief, practice, and goal than any of these preexisting ways of thinking. Even though Sufism as the school of spiritual knowledge based on self cognition as the door toward understanding the realities of Being is a school open to all humanity, but it was born out of Islam and is the heir to the treasures of knowledge from the sacred heart of the Prophet Mohammed, and has practiced its way accordingly. The actual birth of Sufism as a way of thought and practice is therefore subsequent to the advent of Islam.

The history of the origin of Sufism records that during the lifetime of the Prophet Mohammed, fifteen centuries ago, there was a group of pious individuals from different nations who, guided by the Laws of Islam, sought for the direct experience of the Divine. Companions of the Prophet, they were people of principles practicing certain disciplines and meditations for the sake of purification, the realization of Divine love, and the understanding of reality. They were the Lovers of God who sought union with Him through losing the limited self in His Divinity (fana), and remaining alive in that Reality (bagha).

These individuals met on the platform, or suffe, of the mosque where Prophet Mohammed used to pray in Medina, Arabia. They would meet there almost everyday to discuss the ways to inner knowledge, the truths of revelation, and the meanings of the verses of the Koran. Thus the platform of that mosque in Medina became the first gathering place of one of the most influential groups in the history of mankind’s spiritual civilization. They were called ahle suffe, the People of the Platform.

These individuals cultivated the seed of a school of spiritual practice based on knowledge of the self, and thus free of the trappings of tradition and superstition, a knowledge of the inner heart apart from the customary beliefs of their contemporary society as well as those of future civilizations. It is from this group that all the schools of Sufism that have ever existed owe their origin, for by pursuing the path of unsullied inner knowledge they were the founders of Sufism, and the binding link between its subsequent developments.

Among the most famous were: Salman Farsi, Ammar Yasser, Balla’al, and Abdullah Masoud; some historians have added Oveyse Gharani to this list as well. Avoiding proselytizing among the multitude, their gatherings were held in private, open only to true seekers of reality. Instead of preaching in public, these pious individuals were searchers for truth, not performers of rhetoric.

After the Prophet passed away, each of the people of suffe returned to his homeland to instruct students eager to follow upon the path of inner knowledge. There they became the great missionaries of Islam. History shows that within a century or two their style of self understanding and discipline were introduced by their students to nations as diverse and widely separated as Persia, India, Indonesia, Syria, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and North Africa. Their teachings were based on individual understanding and direct experience, not just on particular texts or rote learning. In this manner their fundamental teachings have been preserved in their style up to the present, instead of withering away into the empty formulas of scholasticism.

Through this process of diffusion, different schools and orders of Sufism gradually emerged from the single original group of suffe at Medina. Their practices differ from one another in emphasis and doctrine, but all legitimate Sufi schools trace their ultimate origins back to the original group of the Prophet’s spiritual disciples.

Courtesy: ias.org

India is secular state. it means state will never mess-up with the folks private business. as a matter of facts, however, it’s india which became the first country who banned the salman rushdi’s book ‘the satanic verses’ out of fear infuriating the muslim sentiments in the country. but there’s another fact too, that even if government didnt take any action, it’s the people who will make the self-censorship and if it’s the case, the chaos will follow. so, i dont blame indian government for their degree of rigidity in terms of moral values because indian people are the people of inflammable passion. many films has been retracted by their producers because of censorship from the people. the latest is as i mentioned in previous post was jil bole se nihaal wich’s been ‘censored’ by the Sikh community by bombing the theater in the first night of its premiere!

PUTUSposted by Listy in Indonesia Forum“Dari tadi aku melihatmu melamun terus, Man. Kenapa sih?” tanya Alit pada Norman. “Aku baru diputusin pacarku, Lit,” sahut Norman sedih. “Ya ampun, masa baru diputusin pacar aja sampai murung kayak begitu? Pacarmu kan nggak cakep-cakep amat, Man. kamu kan bisa nyari lagi yang lebih dari dia?!” “Justru itu yang sekarang sedang kupikirkan, Lit,” jawab Norman lesu. “Punya pacar yang nggak cakep aja aku bisa diputusin. Bagaimana mungkin aku bisa dapetin pacar yang lebih cakep dari dia.In EnglishBroken Heart“I see you look so upset. What’s going on?” asks Alit to Norman.”I just dumped by my girlfriend, Lit,” says Norman.”My goodness, how come breaking-up makes you feel so bad? Your girlfriend not so pretty. You even can find another girl who much more beautiful than she is?!”"That’s the things I’m thinking now, Lit,” answer Norman.”If not-so-pretty girlfriend could dump me so easily. How’s possible for me to find another more pretty girlfriend than her?”

Prelude: The question regarding Quran desecration by officials in Guantanamo Bay prison still floating even after Newsweek pull that controversial news out and apologized for it. Further questions: does the news really not exist? or the pentagon just put pressure so hard to Newsweek that this magazine force to retract it? Time will tell. For the moment let’s follow another news from the same magazine regarding this matter.Courtesy: Newsweek MagazineIn 31,000 documents the Pentagon has reviewed, there are allegations but Defense says none is substantiated.Mohsin Raza / ReutersBy Evan Thomas and Michael IsikoffNewsweek May 30 issue – What really happened at Guantanamo? Last week, amid the heat of the controversy over NEWSWEEK’s retracted story, new details about the issue of alleged mistreatment of the Qur’an emerged.The International Committee of the Red Cross announced that it had provided the Pentagon with confidential reports about U.S. personnel disrespecting or mishandling Qur’ans at Gitmo in 2002 and 2003. Simon Schorno, an ICRC spokesman, said the Red Cross had provided “several” instances that it believed were “credible.” The ICRC report included three specific allegations of offensive treatment of the Qur’an by guards. Defense Department spokesman Lawrence Di Rita would not comment on these allegations except to say that the Gitmo commanders routinely followed up ICRC reports, including these, and could not substantiate them. He then gave what is from the Defense Department point of view more context and important new information.It is clear that in 2002, military investigators became frustrated by the unresponsiveness of some high-profile terror suspects, including one who had close contact with the 9/11 hijackers. At the time, fears of another attack from Al Qaeda were running high, and the Pentagon was determined to make the terror suspects talk. The interrogators asked for, and received, Pentagon permission to use tactics like isolation and sleep deprivation. Less clear, however, is what happened to more run-of-the-mill detainees among the 800 or so housed at Guantanamo at the time.According to Di Rita, when the first prisons were built for suspected terrorists at Guantanamo in early 2002, prison guards were instructed to respect the detainees’ religious rituals. The prisoners were given Qur’ans, which they hung from the walls of their cells in cotton surgical masks provided by the prison. Log entries by the guards indicate that in about a dozen cases, the detainees themselves somehow damaged their Qur’ans. In one case a prisoner allegedly ripped up a Qur’an; in another a prisoner tore the cover off his Qur’an. In three cases, detainees tried to stuff pages from their Qur’ans down their toilets, according to the Defense Department’s account of what is in the guards’ reports. (NEWSWEEK was not permitted to see the log items.) The log entries do not indicate why the detainees might have done this, said Di Rita, and prison commanders concluded that certain hard-core prisoners would try to agitate the other detainees by alleging disrespect for Muslim articles of faith.In light of the controversy, one of these incidents bears special notice. Last week, NEWSWEEK interviewed Command Sgt. John VanNatta, who served as the prison’s warden from October 2002 to the fall of 2003. VanNatta recounted that in 2002, the inmates suddenly started yelling that the guards had thrown a Qur’an on or near an Asian-style squat toilet. The guards found an inmate who admitted that he had dropped his Qur’an near his toilet. According to VanNatta, the inmate then was taken cell to cell to explain this to other detainees to quell the unrest. But the incident could partly account for the multiple allegations among detainees, including one by a released British detainee in a lawsuit that claims that guards flushed Qur’ans down toilets.In fewer than a dozen log entries from the 31,000 documents reviewed so far, said Di Rita, there is a mention of detainees’ complaining that guards or interrogators mishandled their Qur’ans. In one case, a female guard allegedly knocked a Qur’an from its pouch onto the detainee’s bed. In another alleged case, said Di Rita, detainees became upset after two MPs, looking for contraband, felt the pouch containing a prisoner’s Qur’an. While questioning a detainee, an interrogator allegedly put a Qur’an on top of a TV set, took it off when the detainee complained, then put it back on. In another alleged instance, guards somehow sprayed water on a detainee’s Qur’an. This handful of alleged cases came out of thousands of daily interactions between guards and prisoners, said Di Rita. None has been substantiated yet, he said.In December 2002, a guard inadvertently knocked a Qur’an from its pouch onto the floor of a detainee’s cell, Di Rita said. A number of detainees protested. That January, partly in response to the incident and partly to provide precise guidelines for new guards and interrogators, the Guantanamo commanders issued precise rules to respect the “cultural dignity of the Koran thereby reducing the friction over the searching of the Korans.” Only chaplains or Muslim interpreters were allowed to inspect detainees’ Qur’ans. “Two hands will be used at all times when handling Korans in a manner signaling respect and reverence,” the rules state. “Ensure that the Koran is not placed in offensive areas such as the floor, near the toilet or sink, near the feet, or dirty/wet areas…”Di Rita said that the Pentagon may look further into the reports found in the logs. The Pentagon is not ruling out the possibility of finding credible reports of Qur’an desecration. But so far, said Di Rita, it has not found any.With Michael Hirsh in Washington© 2005 Newsweek, Inc.Islam