NaveenHussain

WS, I think I read something in al-Kafi stating one is allowed to sell foods that other faiths may consider lawful, or something to that extent. I may post it, if I find it, in shaa'llah.

Salaam, Here are Sunni leaders confirming Qunoot is Sunnah:

WS, If I remember correctly, I read something about our A'immah (as) putting up dividers or curtains between the men and women in gatherings. I don't remember the source, unfortunately. I read it many years back.

Have you ascertained whether or not the meat is slaughtered in a Halaal manner by a Muslim? If not, according to ahadeeth I have read, it looks like you may give the meat to those who consider it lawful. So, I suppose it could be given to non-Muslims, as a precautionary measure of not giving it to Muslims.

Hello! This forum is filled with many a topics. I'm pretty confident that you'd find replies to many of your queries if you just search the forum. You can even Google search Shiachat on Google, with whatever topic you want to read about. If you cannot find answers to other questions that you may have, please feel free to ask.

Salaam, You guys have to understand that even Dr. Nakshawani knows about Taqiyyah and how extreme "Shias" can be against those who disagree or have different views, thus he may change what he says. If you have followed him for the past few years, you'll see how he changes his stances, and in private, he sometimes says something to the contrary. I'm not going to say whether or not I agree with him at this time, because I don't think people care, to be honest. I just want you guys to understand that he also knows about how many of you act towards him.

WS, You can still do Mutah and not have kids, thus they shouldn't affect you much more than your friends and acquaintances may affect you.

According to many ahadeeth, it's said when the girl hits 9 lunar years or begins menstrual cycles, whichever comes first, she becomes baligh.

We do have a hadeeth mentioning [if I remember correctly] Salmaan's faith is at 9 [out of 10], Abu Dhar's is at 8, and Miqdaad's is at 7. The specific hadeeth I read only mentioned them 3. I heard a lecture by Sayed Mahdi Modarresi [i think it was him] where he mentioned a hadeeth we have where someone asked our Imam (as) about the true Shia, and I think Imam (as) mentions Salmaan, Abu Dhar, and Miqdaad. The guy continues to ask about Ammar bin Yasir, but Imam (as) mentions that he's not on the level of the 3, and that the 3 NEVER doubted in them (as). Of course, I'm paraphrasing what I remember.

Wahdat al-Wujood seems to me very similar to the concept of the Catholics' Trinity. In reply to many of you who advise to read the scholars' books on the topic: sure, that can be done, but if you cannot answer, logically, after reading their books, what makes you think the books are credible? Some scholars may think they know, when they don't, which may lead to arrogance, as I see hinted in many Sufi teachings. Tell me about Ayatollah Khomeini's poem Irfan al-Ghazal. I'm thinking perhaps he let the arrogance get the best of him, hence WF Mutlaq, and killing many people [1988 mass murders, etc.]. Would you agree that if he found himself "enlightened" to such an extent, he may have seen God in himself, and done what he did, and it's all justified? Don't you see why I am concerned about this Wahdat al-Wujood as some Shia scholars believe?

Are there any U.S. Muslim groups that say such things (that I highlighted in red)? I'm just curious.

Salaam, People here may not fully agree with UMAA, Muslim Congress, or any other U.S. Shia organization. That's okay, though, because rarely will you find yourself agreeing 100% with any fallible person or group. FBI also recruits at Universities, but I know most Shias will not boycott Universities. I recently attended an UMAA press release event that was held in Washington, D.C., and Brother Rahat did speak out against U.S. governmental policies. I did like that, as I felt that he was sincere in his approach, even if UMAA makes some mistakes. The same can be said about Muslim Congress; I think the people may be sincere, but they will make some mistakes. Don't try to persuade us into thinking Muslim Congress is perfect. Let's be realistic. Sure, one group MAY be better organized than the other, [i'm not taking sides here] but I think Shias need to unite against the real enemy -- ignorance. At the end of the day, if you don't agree with the other group's ways, come to the conferences and ask your question in public. I'm not asking you to start a problem or anything, but sincerely seek to understand why said group does what it does. I think this will help both sides come to a better understanding of each other. After the press release event by UMAA, I spoke with Brother Rahat, asking him how we could get other Shia groups such as Muslim Congress to join UMAA and other Shia groups in events such as Baqee' Protests in front of the Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C. If Shias are able to unite on joint causes, it should be able to get more support. I asked this question because a brother from Chicago was complaining about his group coming all the way from Chicago to Washington D.C., and only seeing a minimal turnout. We have many Shia in our area, alhamdulillah, but we need to show in large numbers, I think, in order for people to REALLY take us seriously. I don't think any Shia Muslim will have anything against uniting for the sake of protecting holy sites such as Jannat al-Baqee'. Politics aside, I think we need to start viewing each others as siblings that may disagree; at the end of the day, we still love each other. I'm genuinely interested in having Shia groups come together. Is UMAA willing to talk with Muslim Congress and vice-versa, when it comes to a joint cause such as a Jannatul Baqee' Protest in Washington, D.C.? Brother Rahat has mentioned reaching out to Muslim Congress. Will Muslim Congress join-in and meet other Shias in such joint causes?

What exactly about the speech of Wolfowitz does UMAA regret? Is there any video or transcript available on the dialogue between UMAA and Obama? I'm interested in knowing what exactly was discussed to help the Shias worldwide. JazakAllah.

I appreciate your reply. I also want Rahat [an UMAA guy] to reply.

UMAA allowed Wolfowitz to speak, if I'm not mistaking. Do you have a video of that speech? Has he delivered on whatever was said in that speech? If not, do you publicly call him out for his hypocrisy or not keeping true to his word? How has the speech advanced our Shia position today?

Salaam, As someone mentioned, Sunni and Shia often remember, commemorate, etc. the Prophet Muhammad's [saww] birthdate. It's the new-age Salafis [often referred to as Wahhabis] that usually have an issue with remembering, commemorating, etc. Islam is a religion of empathy. As someone else mentioned, we aim to be happy and sad at the Ahlul Bayt's [as] happiness and sadness. As for remembering, commemorating, "celebrating," etc., it depends on what one means by the term celebrate. Remember: we have ahadeeth about fasting on certain Prophets' birthdays and the benefits derived therefrom. One may call that "celebrating" or remembering, or seeking nearness to Allah [swt], etc. I can't speak for specific gatherings, but in general, in regards to birthdays of our holy figures, the aim is usually to remember our holy figures, congregate, eat together, and see people that we haven't seen in a while, or even meeting new people. I don't think anyone can say that is haraam in and of itself. Prophets [as] had birthdays since the beginning of times; it predates paganism, if you liked to think of it that way. Now, of course, we'd want to avoid any haraam in our gatherings. If you don't want to cut some cake, maybe you can bring some date-fruits, to cover for any sugar cravings. ------- I remember seeing on Facebook some Salafi guy's pictures from when he was about 6 years old or so. It was a picture of him and his family cutting cake for his birthday. He wrote, on the captions of the picture, "we were cutting cake, but not celebrating." I looked at the picture and laughed and said Maashaa'llah at how they justify it to their own likings.

What kind of GI issues?

Both sides -- Republicans and Democrats -- are run by the same group of Elites. Read Jesse Ventura's Democrips and Rebloodlicans. He was a former governor of Minnesota, a former Navy Seal, and he gives a lot of insightful information since he has seen it firsthand. I don't think the people at UMAA understand.

WS, Patience101 described it pretty well. We have certain ahadeeth about being optimistic and how that may affect your actions, etc. We also have ahadeeth on the affects of self-esteem. Much of what you attain is from your focus, via the subconscious and conscious mind. As for the book and movie The Secret, it has some truth to it, but also many flaws come with the whole notion. As others have alluded to, they may tell you that you can do anything, but they wouldn't want to try flying off of a 16-story building like a bird, else they wouldn't have any more spokesmen. Haha...so, in essence, they mix a bit of truth with a bunch of falsehood, and it misleads MANY people. How to get rid of it?? Well, you don't have to, since ahadeeth mention the likes of it. It's in obedience to Allah's [swt] laws. Sayyid Mahdi Modarressi had a lecture kind of explaining this topic.

Salaam, The following video should answer many of the Sunni misconceptions about Karbala':

Then I Was Guided is a great book. I have read it. In particular, it's very useful to give to Sunnis wanting to know about Shias, since the author made the journey of converting over from Sunnism to Shiism, and he recounts his reasons for doing so. I recommend the book so much that I like for us to give the book away, to Sunnis, for purposes of D'awah.

I follow the Nautical Twilight time in my area for the Fajr timing. It's sort of alluded to in Nahjul Balaghah, and also, I think it best fits our ahadeeth. I did my own calculations and was following that for a while, and alhamdulillah, I read that Allamah Tabataba'i follows the same timing I do for the timing of Midnight, which is 11 hours and 15 minutes after Dhuhr. Dhuhr time should be when the sun is in the South. So, it was reassuring when I read that Tabataba'i mentioned the same timing for Midnight [to the exact minute] that I have concluded from my research. I came up with the Midnight timings considering the Fajr timings as Nautical Twilight. Alhamdulillah, and Allah knows best.

It's said too much protein is bad for our health. If I were you, I'd focus on better quality foods. Personally, I get free-range organic eggs that come from chickens that aren't given antibiotics. If you need more protein, try some organic Dhabeehah halaal chicken. You can bake the chicken with organic potatoes and organic onions. Toast and butter your organic bread, and then sprinkle organic garlic powder and himalayan sea salt [for minerals] onto it. I like to eat 2 eggs a day, whenever possible, for a good quality protein for breakfast. The whole egg is healthy. Don't throw away the yolks, for it contains vital nutrients. Many people tend to focus on fitness more than health; make sure to focus on both. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/09/03/too-much-protein.aspx http://www.cornucopia.org/organic-egg-scorecard/

Read post #8.

The people at UMAA may have good intentions, but they seem to be misguided. May Allah [swt] open their [and our] hearts to the truth.