Abu Hadi

Salam. I would suggest you do some research first. Here is a good book to start with Who Are The Shi’a? | Inquiries About Shi'a Islam | Al-Islam.org Then once you are convinced that the path of Ahl Al Bayt((عليه السلام)) is the correct one, then pick a marjaa' (reference) and start to follow their fatawa. Also, there is no problem going to a masjid that is governed by other Mathahib, so long as they don't attempt to coerce you into following their way. There might not be a masjid where you live who are governed by followers of Ahl Al Bayt((عليه السلام)), but if you give your city we might be able to put you in touch with families who are in the area.

I don't know if you heard of the 'dead Internet' theory, but it basically says that the majority of traffic / users on the Internet is just bots (not real people) interacting with other bots. I tend to agree with that, I can give you the reasons if you'd like. Any kind of data collection done on the public Internet with unverified (anonymous) users is going to be 'bot swarmed'. In other words, most of the data will be from bots, not real people. There are many large and powerful groups in the world today who have an interest in making anything about Iran look shady / terrorist related / distorted. These are most likely the bots who responded to this survey. Like others have said, If you really want to know about Iran, have actual conversations with Iranians from different political / religious views or much better than that, actually travel to Iran. This is the only way you are going to find out.

Bismillah Ta'la As many of you know, I reverted to Islam when I was 21 years old. I was raised before that as a Christian. I grew up in Los Angeles and this is where I was living when I reverted. In LA, there is no 'central muslim area' like there is in other cities. Also, the Muslim community in LA is extremely diverse. The group I was around, in the beginning were Arabs, specifically Egyptians, Palestinians, and Lebanese. Most of the guys were students and this was in the south part of the LA area. In the beginning, I was like most reverts. I didn't know enough about the religion to make any kind of decision about Sunni/Shia and which one was right and I wasn't leaning in any particular direction. In fact, I was more of a 'Quranist', i.e. non sectarian, but after a few discussions with the brothers I found this was not a tenable position to take as a Muslim for the simple reason of fiqh. Issues of prayer, fasting, hajj, etc, and how the fatawa were slightly different between different mathahib and since I couldn't follow all of them (i.e. I had to pray in a certain way, fast in a certain way, etc) I had to follow one so I began doing research and having discussions. There was one particular discussion that I had with my friends, two were Sunni (Palestinian and Egyptian) and one was Shia (Lebanese). It was about Ghadir Khum, a subject that has been discussed alot, alot on this site. I didn't have any of that information when I first reverted, and in fact this site didn't exist when I first reverted and the Internet even was a new thing. I got most of the information thru books that I bought, some I got for free, and thru discussions with muslims. I wasn't aware of the two good books on the subject that are translated into English (Peshawar Nights and 'Then I was guided'). At that time, there wasn't many book on the subject that were translated into English (this is the mid 90s) So in the discussion, I realized that all the guys, Sunni and Shia, accepted this hadith, that it was authentic, the circumstances that it occured in, and the fact that Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) said 'Whoever I am his Maula, Ali is his Maula'. It was after that the discussion got heated at the point where it usually get's heated, about the meaning of the word 'Maula'. I was just listening, but after hearing about the merits of Imam Ali((عليه السلام)), the close relationship between Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) and Imam Ali((عليه السلام)), the fact that Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) raised Imam Ali((عليه السلام)), that Imam Ali((عليه السلام)) was a brave warrior and a natural leader, and that he was Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h)'s son in law, I could not accept that the word Maula means 'Friend'. To gather all those Muslims together, in the heat of the day, in the middle of the desert, to hold up Imam Ali((عليه السلام).)'s hand for all to see, to tell those that had left to come back, to erect a pulpit, etc, etc, to say 'Ali is my friend' ? I really couldn't believe that these guys who I was friends with could believe that. I actually called the Egyptian guy stupid for believing that. Of course, that was rude and I wouldn't do that again knowing what I know now about aklaq and how sensitive this issue is. I apologized for that but he didn't accept my apology and in fact after that day I never spoke to him again, not because I didn't want to but he didn't want to speak to me. What they didn't understand is that I was the only one there who did not have all the 'cultural baggage', so I could see the issue very clearly. This is a kind of 'super power' that reverts have as compared to those who were born into the religion. I did some more research on the subject of Ghadir and found that the only really correct and acceptable meaning of 'Maula' given the circumstances of the speech of Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) is 'Leader' and not 'Friend'. The meaning is 'Whoever I am his leader, Ali is his leader'. Once I heard and understood that statement of Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h), the I realized this is my obligation, as a respect to Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) to take Imam Ali((عليه السلام).) as my leader. So I did and this is why I am Shia. Today, more than 20 years later, I am even more convinced that I made the right decision.

Bismillah Ta'la As most of you know, at least those who live in the US, Trump is getting more unpopular by the day and is dragging down the Republican party with him. His failed policies, especially on the economy, and his continued full throated support for the Zionist cause are making the situation worse and worse. If things were allowed to take their natural course, he knows and so does everyone else, that Republicans will lose the House and Senate in 2026 and Trump will be a 'super lame duck' President from then on going to 2028. I think there is some evidence at this point that Trump also has a plan for this. He is deploying the military to mostly democratic controlled cities like LA, Chicago, Boston, etc. The excuse now is to 'crack down on illegal immigration' and 'crime' in general although crime in these cities has gone down significantly in the last 20 years. So what is the plan ? I believe he wants to get people used to having the military around so that they can do their real job for him, which is voter suppression in Democrat controlled areas. I think there will be some big disturbance in Nov of 2026 and with the military in place already, he will use them to create chaos and confusion in these places around voting, closing polling places in the name of 'security', etc. Then he will come out and say 'The people have spoken, we got the most votes so we won'. I think he is going to concentrate these efforts in big cities, like LA, Detroit, Chicago, Boston, Seattle, Atlanta. I also think this will be concentrated in 'purple' or swing states. I think everyone should have this in their mind, at least in the back of their mind for now, and to watch out for it.

There are basically two groups in Lebanon. The 'Pro West' faction and the 'Anti West' faction. Lebanon has been like this for a while now, at least since the 1950s. The 'Pro West' faction takes their orders from the US, directly. They used to take their orders from France before this. They all wish they could live in the 'West' and they believe the 'West' is the pinnacle of civilization. This group includes all religious and sectarian groups, at least a portion of them, so it's really not accurate to divide along religious / sectarian lines. There are Shia / Sunni / Christian / Druze / Atheists / Secularists who are in this group. Up until the late 1970s, early 1980s this group was the dominant group in Lebanon and controlled the Government and most parts of Lebanese society. The 'Anti Western' group was always there, but they were politically and militarily weak, so they did not control anything and had very little influence on Lebanese society. I would say the majority of the group are Shia, but it also includes Communists, Nationalists, Sunnis, Christians, etc. What unites this group is their distrust of the 'West' which includes Europe, the US, and of course the Zionists. This group sees the Zionists as nothing but a fist of Western Imperialism extended toward Lebanon and the ME, and there have been many of these fists throughout recent history, France being one of them. The goal of US Imperialism in dominance of Lebanon and the ME and turning the Lebanese, Arabs, and Muslims into their slaves or wiping them out altogether. I happen to be with the 'Anti Western' group even though I live in the West simply because there is literally mountains of evidence that the goal of the US/Zionists is actually to enslave or wipe out the Lebanese people and there is very little evidence that they actually have any good intentions toward Lebanon. It is an intellectual issue for me, because of where I live but for the Lebanese it is a real issue that affects their lives every day and I have sympathy for them because of that. Hezbollah is part of this group but they are unique in the fact that they actually have a long list of accomplishments to show that they are effective in counteracting and fighting against this malevolent force of Imperialism in Lebanon. They are different from the 'Anti Western' groups that came before them because mostly these other groups were just talk and fluff and didn't have much to show in the way of accomplishments. Because of the fact that Hezb has accomplishments, and because of that wide support across different factions in Lebanon, they are the main target of the US/Zionists. THE Imperialists / Zionists have had a string of recent successes against Hezb, such as the pager attack and the assassination of Sayyid Hassan. I think these attacks have forced Hezb to go back to their roots and how they operated in the early 80s, i.e. as an underground movement that operated mostly in secret and did not make public statements or share details about what they were doing unless it was absolutely necessary to do so. In the early 80s, they were weak and everyone was trying to destroy them, including the Lebanese government and the Lebanese army as well as other factions such as Amal and other militias. They survived those times, so they know how to operate underground. I think once they reform and regroup they will come out stronger than before. They will react as circumstances dictate. This is because all the fundamental forces that created Hezb are still around and still valid and operating. So I don't see anything changing except the mode and specifics of their tactics. The recent statements about the civil war are just a reminder to the Lebanese govt that 'We are still around, we are still powerful, forget about getting our weapons, that will never happen and if you are going to force us to give up our weapons by attacking us with weapons, we will fight back'. I think the Lebanese govt got the message. They tried their move, which failed, and are now collecting their paychecks from the US/Zionists.

Step one is that you need to look for a scholar who is qualified for taqleed, i.e. a marjaa' taqleed. This qualification is thru general consensus of other qualified scholars. There are some who are almost universally agreed upon to be marjaa Taqleed. Imam Khameni is one of them. Another is Sayyid Sistani. Step two is a very important step which many overlook. Step two means you look in the Resalat of the marjaa you want to follow and read very carefully the section on the conditions for taqleed, according to the marjaa you want to follow. The conditions for taqleed are different for each marjaa and this is one of the major points of difference between maraja. Some marjaa' say you are required to follow the marjaa' you think is the most knowledgeable. Some say you must follow the most knowledgeable in fiqh (subsection of knowledge). Some say you can choose from any qualified marjaa' (i.e. a marjaa' taqleed) and they don't have to be the most knowledgeable. Some say you are required to follow a marjaa' who is free to make fatawa, i.e. he is not limited in his fatawa by political conditions in the country where he lives. Etc. Like others have said, there are no marjaa' that say you must follow the marjaa' you 'like' as this is a very vague condition. So if, for example your marjaa' says you must follow the most knowledgeable in terms of fiqh and you believe that the marjaa' you 'like' is also the most knowledgeable in this area, then you can follow that marjaa. If you don't know enough about fiqh to know who is the most knowledgeable, then you can consult ulema on this topic, and see who they agree upon, and I think this is the wise course because most of us are not knowledgeable enough to even know who is the most knowledgeable. If, for example, your marjaa that you 'like' says that you can pick amoung the qualified marjaa', then pick them since they are a qualified marjaa' and you 'like' them, but you should realize and know that you are not doing taqleed to them because you like them, but because you are following them based on his own (the marjaa's) condition for taqleed. I am not saying you can't follow a marjaa' that you like, but you can't do taqleed to him because of this fact by itself. This fact by itself is not sufficient for you to do taqleed. Even if you asked Sayyid Khamenai himself if you can do taqleed to him, and he asked you 'why' and you said 'Because I like you', he would say that this is not a valid reason to do taqleed and to read his Resalat first and understand it and then do taqleed.

I am sort of familiar with that part of the country and I know what you are talking about. You are right and this area might be an exception to the rule. I am talking more about the vast majority of Western Society, including the US. The area you are talking about is the poorest part of the country, economically, at the same time it is very rich in culture, history, music, etc. In those areas where there is poverty, women are forced to be more resourceful out of necessity / survival. I know my thinking might be a product of where I grew up (middle class, suburban, West Coast). So I acknowledge that. As for the words, yes I agree that we should not translate the Arabic word 'mahr' as dowry although this is the most common translation. At the same time, if you say 'well I'm just giving you a gift', that really isn't accurate either because yes it is a gift, but it is also part of a marriage contract, not just a gift that you give randomly like a birthday present or a gift you give at a baby shower or housewarming party. There is no other word in the English language that I am aware of that means a sum or gift that is given as part of a marriage contract or ceremony. Maybe we should just say the word 'mahr' and explain what it means. I don't know. I also think your idea about "we agree to go on 5 dates..." is a good idea. We need to come up with a set of flash cards for guys who want to do Mutah with a non Muslims. Card 1, say '...', Card 2, say '...'. Lol.

Obviously Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) is the One who decides what happens and what doesn't happen but my point was that their intention is now obvious for all the world to see. If u know that someone's intention is to kill you and they have outright said it, you are going to fight this person in whatever way you can. That is the logic of self defense and it is universally accepted I also don't agree that Israel hasn't succeeded in cutting off most aid to Gaza. If aid was getting in, why are people starving to death them ? 118 cases in the last month that are documented. Over 80 children. Ok so maybe not everyone is starving but that doesn't mean aid is getting in. I'm not sure what is the longest you have gone without eating but if u haven't eaten in a few days or more you will do literally anything to get food and u will eat anything that is edible. The fact that people are starving means there isn't enough getting in to feed at least a significant portion of the population. There are only three ways to get food into Gaza in significant amounts. Two by land (eretz crossing in S. israel and Rafah crossing in N Egypt) and by sea. Since March Eretz crossing has either been closed completely or they are letting in 15 to 20 trucks a day. Basically the same as nothing. Rafah crossing controlled by Sisi, Netanyahu's poodle, has been letting in 50 to 60 trucks a day, when it isn't closed. The sea route is completely closed and any boats that get closed to Gaza are taken over by Zionist pirates. This recently happened to freedom flotillas 1 and 2. UN estimates that u need 600 trucks per day at bare minimum to feed the population at basic levels. So we are more than 500 short. Zionists are using food as a weapon of war. That is so obvious.

What I would say is that this is 'pre Oct 8, 2023' thinking. I said in my post that 'you have to weigh it against...' because implied in that statement is that it does do harm, but that this harm is less than the alternative, which is much more harmful. Pre Oct 8, 2023, we had the luxury of being 'purists', i.e. let's vote for someone who is fully just (in the Islamic definition) or don't vote for anyone. At the present time, we don't have that luxury because we see in front of our eyes on a daily basis that the goal of the Zionists and Zionist controlled governments is to wipe us from the face of the earth. Starting in Gaza, then moving to the West Bank, then the Arab world, then the whole world. That is very crystal clear now to pretty much all muslims and human beings in general. In this case, where you have a knife at your throat, you have limited options. No options are good or 'pure'. I am not under that illusion. Mamdani, and the 'anti Zionists', whether they are secular or not, will serve as a crutch or a barricade to stop the extermination plan of the Zionists and their stooges in the West like Trump, et al. Yes, those other things that Mamdani supports are harmful but not fatal. Ignoring the Zionist threat at this point in history is fatal. You can see that clearly in Gaza and their plans are to extend this to other places. They say this openly. So you have to deal with reality the way it is, not the way you want it to be. We have examples before us of people who ignored or down played the threats of the Colonizers who the Zionists took the playbook from. The Native Americans are one such example. They remained divided and did not really address the threat of the European Colonizers until it was too late. We all know how that story ended. Not in a good way. We muslims don't want to be the second chapter in that story. If we ignore this example which is right in front of our eyes then we are foolish.

If she is currently in a haram relationship, why would you want to marry her ?

What you need to understand about this is that (and don't tell your potential wife this, especially when you first meet her) is that alot, or probably the majority of the expectations for a relationship (marriage) is rooted in or wholly a fantasy. This is true for both women and men. The difference is that men's expectations(fantasies) about a relationship are most of the time 'over the top', and not generally socially accepted. So when they are confronted about this, it's easy for a man to disregard them and 'clamp down' his expectations. Also, men, in general, are more practical thinkers vs most women. There are some women who are practical thinkers but this is kind of rare. The women's expectations (fantasies) about a relationship are deep rooted in the culture (at least in the West) and are socially accepted which is why women are not usually challenged on these fantasies so they think of them as normal expectations. If you want to know what I'm talking about (fantasies of women), you can read almost any romance novel, watch any 'chick flic' or 'romcom' and this will basically give you the idea about what these are. Because these fantasies are socially acceptable, women cling to them and use them as the standard by which they judge men to see if he is a potential husband. When a man does something that breaks this expectation / fantasy, women feel uncomfortable and they don't like it, i..e it repels them because they think 'this isn't what is supposed to happen..'. In other words, I never saw this happen in a rom com, romance novel, tela novela (for the Spanish Speakers), or Arabic tela Novela or Hollywood / Bollywood movie. When you do this (i.e. a mutah contract), you are going 'off script' for them so this doesn't feel right, and it doesn't mean it isn't right, it just means they are reacting to something subconciously and they might not even be aware of it. Most guys who are 'players' already realized this, so they stay 'on script' and try their best to live up to these expectations/ fantasies, that is until they 'get what they want', then move on to the next target. This is also why most Western women are bitter and disillusioned by the time they hit 30. But that is another topic. At the same time, we can't use this strategy (i.e. the player strategy) because it contradicts Islam. That is also why you find that most Muslim guys (by the time they hit 30 or so) are in three categories, almost exclusively. They are either married, in full player mode and have disregarded Islam (at least in the area of marriage and relationships), or they are not succeeding in this area and probably have become corrupted by haram activities. The 'not suceeding' category is growing bigger and bigger as evidenced by the many posts on SC and other places as our sisters fall deeper and deeper into this fantasy mode. Again, another topic. The terms and conditions of Mutah (back to the topic) are there to protect both the women and the man. They give us the 'most bang for our buck' (no pun intended) in terms of protection and security at low cost. If the Mutah moves on to permenant marriage, both the man and women are protected because before the nikah, they weren't doing haram, but were in a recognized Islam marriage so their reputation is preserved and they cannot be slandered and doubted. If the marriage ends, then there is no divorce (which is traumatizing) and they both move on with their lives, knowing that they didn't do haram, and thus no guilt and consequences of being in an adulterous relationship. They are protected from harms such as children born out of wedlock, reputation destruction, and financial harms. They are also protected from spiritual harms of living outside the deen. They get all this protection for saying a few words (the nikah, time limit and dowry). It is very resonable and practical, but, it stares down this socially sanctioned women's fantasy life strait to it's face. As to how to introduce a women to it, that depends on the women, and the nature of the pre marriage relationship. There is not 'one size fits all' for this. I would say try to establish a friendly, trusting relationship with the women without doing anything physical or haram. If the relationship gets to that point, which it normally doesn't but sometimes does, then explain to her that, as muslims, we need to establish a recognized relationship (relationship recognized by Islam and Allah(s.w.a)) if we want to be gf/bf. Tell her the Mutah is the way of making this recognized relationship (don't call it a marriage, lol). Explain to her what the dowry is for (it's a gift to her) and why the time limit (so that there is no divorce should we break up). That's basically it.

This statement is based on an assumption or premise. The premise is that suffering is bad and there is no purpose to it. Since God is merciful, he would not create something that is bad and has no purpose. Thus, God doesn't exist. If the premise was correct, then, yes, I would agree with the conclusion, but the premise is wrong. At the same time, Islam proposes a different premise. In Islam, suffering is not bad, at least not entirely bad since there is a purpose for it. Suffering is part of the plan of Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) that is perfecting creation, and each part of creation and bringing toward it's ultimate and final existence. It is an evolutionary process, but not mere physical evolution but also spiritual evolution, i.e. evolution of that thing and the part of that thing which is non material. It is hard to understand in the abstract so let me give a practical example. There is one case that is often cited by the atheist which is the case of a child getting cancer and dying after suffering for days, weeks, months, or sometimes years. In Islam, we have the saying that 'Hell is surrounded by lusts and pleasures and heaven is surrounded by hardship and suffering'. In other words, the ultimate end of those who engage in pleasures and lusts without considering what God has ordered and without considering the injustices that the person is doing to others in a headless way, is hell. The ultimate destination of those who undergo hardship and suffering in the way of God, i.e. after following the religion of God as they understand it, is heaven. With this statement, there is also a premise. The premise is that in order to get to heaven, which is the ultimate manifestation of everything good, it requires the person to go thru suffering and hardship. This is a requirement and not optional. So if someone wants heaven, they must pay the cost, which is hardship and suffering to a degree. This suffering takes on many forms, physical hardships, loss of property or loved ones, public humiliation, loss of employment, reputation, illness, hunger, thirst, missed opportunities, etc. Now let's say a young child is destined to die at 9 years old. This child is sincere and believes in God and wants paradise. Since God is Just and Merciful, God will give this child that opportunity but since the price for everyone is suffering and hardship, the child must also pay this price. The only way to do this, and still maintain justice is to compress the suffering and hardship into a short window of time, so that the cost will be paid and the child will enter heaven. A child going thru treatments like chemotherapy is extremely painful and from our limited perspective, all we see is suffering of an innocent for apparently no reason, unless we understand the reason. For normal people, who live a regular lifespan, if you add up all the suffering and hardship we go thru over 70,80, 90 years of life and compress it into, say, a two year period, it will seem like a tremendous amount of suffering, but not as much when spread over a longer time when it is interspersed by happy times. Most people cannot deal with a period of years of extreme suffering without losing their mind and their faith, and that is why few actually go thru this. At the same time, God knows that this child can handle it and that is why they go thru it. Also, this child having cancer is a test for the parents, and the society. Will the parents abandon their child to this suffering and leave them, or will they love them and support them thru this time. If they love them and support them, then they are elevating themselves and getting closer to heaven and if they abandon they are debasing themselves and getting closer to hell. Everyone is tested, but our tests are different based on aspects of us that only God knows about. This is the premise of Islam vis a via suffering. There is a purpose to it and that is why it is not entirely bad. If I have time, I will try to answer your other points later.

Marjaa' comes from the Arabic word rajaa', which means to return to or to go back to. The job of the marjaa' is to return us to the original path of Muhammad(p.b.u.h) and Ahl Bayt((عليه السلام)), more specifically the Imams((عليه السلام)) who were appointed by Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) to guide us to the Haqq. The way they accomplish this is two ways. First is thru study and research and second is thru impeccable morals and Aklaq that serve as an example for the people The study and research is thru years and decades of studying subjects such as Arabic language and literature, Islamic History from primary sources, and various scientific fields such as Ilm Al Rijal (science of narrators of Hadith) and other sciences. Second they live their life in accordance with the clear teachings of Islam. They do the wajib, do the mustahab, as much as they can and refrain from and stay away from the haram and the makrooh. They also practice the Aklaq (morals and manners) of Muhammad(p.b.u.h) was Ahl Muhammad by being kind, generous, forgiving, courageous, just, etc. Once they have reached a level where their knowledge is surpassing most of their contemporaries in the fields discussed and they are also at a high levels in morals and manners, they are then encouraged by those around them to publish their resalat. A resalat is a book giving their fatawa on the common issues that affect all Muslims such as Salat(prayer), Saum(fasting), Hajj,(pilgrimage), Khums( required charity), Najasat/ Taharat ( ritual purity), Business transactions, etc This resalat is then scrutinized and examined by other knowledgeable Muslims who are considered at the same level or higher than the author. If these individuals find the resalat to be good and free of mistakes then they endorse the resalat and thus the author. If there is a consensus amoung the knowledgeable regarding the author, then the author is now a marjaa' which means the Muslims can follow this person as a means of rajaa' or return to the path of Muhammad(p.b.u.h) wa Ahl Muhammad. A marjaa now becomes a marjaa taqleed. Taqleed is the Arabic terms that is used when someone would tie their camel or horse to a post. The meaning is that doing taqleed is 'tying yourself' to the marjaa which in practical terms means following them as a guide or reference. The muqaled (the one who takes the marjaa as a reference) is now accountable before Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) for following the fatawa of the marjaa and the marjaa is accountable before Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) for giving the correct fatawa based on the knowledge that they have. If a Shia does not follow a marjaa, then they are accountable before Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) for all their actions and deducing the correct actions based on the authentic teachings of Muhammad wa Ahl Muhammad(p.b.u.h) Since the average Shia does not have the required knowledge to do this they follow a marjaa and then they are only accountable for following the fatawa of the marjaa and not for deducing the authentic teachings from the original sources (i.e. the hard part)

Just because a Hadith is in Wasilat or Bihar Al Anwar or another of the well known books of Hadith does not mean it is Sahih. We don't have Sahih books. Each Hadith is to be examined separately and there is a whole science related to authenticating Hadith. That is why we follow marjaa. They spend years and decades studying Hadith in order to determine if the Hadith is Sahih, ie really from a masoom(Prophet Muhammad((صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم)) or Imams(as)). I think if u want to learn about Mutah, it would be more beneficial to study the rulings of Marjaa, particularly the modern ones like Sayyid Sistani, Imam Khamenaie, Sayyid Fadlallah, etc as they have many fatawa and some have even written books on the subject. If u have a question about how the marjaa came to their opinion, u can ask there office. There are certain points on the subject that they basically all agree on. I will try to summarize a few 1. Mutah is halal and was made Halal in Holy Quran and was commonly practiced during the time of Rasoulallah((صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم)) and during the Caliphate of Abu Bakr. The one who made it haram was Umar and he had no right to make haram what Holy Quran made Halal. 2. Just because it is halal does not mean it is always good to do it and there are many circumstances where it is not advisable to do it, such as when someone has a young wife who is a available to him. 3. Mutah must be practiced within the moral guidelines of Islam and the moral guidelines of marriage in Islam. 4. Permenant marriage (zawaj tul Nikah) is the preferred marriage in Islam and it is superior to Mutah because it preserves the lineage and helps to build up society. If someone has the choice between zawaj tul nikah and Mutah, all other factors being equal, they should do zawaj tul nikah (permenant marriage)

If you live in the West, it is always the choice between the bad, the worse, and the horrific when it comes to politicians. The logical choice would be to take the bad, because if you refuse the bad then you'll get the worse or the horrific If Muslims in New York don't vote, or vote for Cuomo or Adams, then instead of a secular / confused , but still a Muslim (I guess, lol), you'll get a Satanic lap dog for Netanyahu (Cuomo and Adams). So, again, the logical choice would be to take the secular / confused over the Satanic lap dog. Now it is possible that the secular / confused may turn into the Satanic lap dog once he gets into power, but that hasn't happened yet so we can't assume it's going to. We need to deal with reality as it stands today. If that event happens then we'll deal with it at that time. As an example, we can look at the recent situation with the Democratic Party and the genocide in Gaza. Muslims in the US traditionally voted for Democrats because, well, we thought at least they wouldn't slaughter us en mass or give 100% support to the Israeli government to do that. Once the Biden Administration (and Harris also, because she never distanced herself from this policy) gave their 100% support to the genocide in Gaza, Muslims in the US (or very few) did not vote for them and they lost the election in 2024. If Mamdani 'turns', we can do the same in that case. BTW, there has been lots of evidence since then that Harris actually lost BECAUSE she made no effort and no concessions in order to get the Muslim vote. If some are skeptical and would like the evidence posted, I can post. This is because Muslims in the US are a significant minority at this point, being between 9 to 10% (approx 32 million people) of the US population and they are the wild card voters. Generally, they don't affiliate themselves with a party and vote based on the issues and also based on foreign policy issues. There is no other group in the US that is that large that votes this way, and most of the votes are already 'pre decided' before the election even happens, Republicans voting for Republicans and Democrats voting for Democrats. As of today, July 25, 2025, I think all the Muslims who live in NY should vote for Mamdani (for the reasons stated previously). If you are looking for a 'good' politician in the West/ US, sorry but they don't exist. It would be the same as looking for a Unicorn, a Leprechaun, or the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus. BTW, voting, at least in the West is not the same as giving Ba'ya (allegience). Voting is making a strategic political move in order to (in your best guess / estimation and based on the information you have at the time) decrease the possibility of harm coming to you, your family, or the Ummah in general and this action (attempting to decrease / eliminate harm) is considered legitimate by all marjaa' I am aware of. Decreasing the possibility of harm is part of self defense, which is legitimate and allowed and encouraged in Islam. If Mamdani allows weed, or prostitution, for example, to become legal, that doesn't really harm me (or practicing Muslims) since I know these things are haram and I wouldn't have anything to do with them whether they are legal or illegal. Yes, there is a general harm done to society by allowing these things but you have to weigh that against the potential harm from someone like Cuomo or Adams. They are allowing the FBI to grab muslims off the street and throw them into concentration camps also called 'detention camps' just for saying 'We support Palestine and Palestinian rights'. That is much, much more harmful. So we have to look at the lesser harm vs the greater harm. Again, the logical choice would be to take the lesser harm.

Salam. There is a big difference between Mu'tah and Misyar. Mu'tah is mentioned and allowed in Holy Quran and it was practiced during the time of Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) and Abu Bakr until is was banned by Umar. This is from the following book The Legitimacy of Mut'a | Muta', Temporary Marriage in Islamic Law | Al-Islam.org In the sura entitled 'Women', after listing those women to whom marriage is forbidden, the Qur'an states as follows: “Lawful for you is what is beyond all that, that you may seek, using your wealth, in wedlock and not in license. So those of them whom you enjoy, give them their appointed wages; it is no fault in you in agreeing together, after the due apportionate. God is All-Knowing, All-Wise" (4:24). All Shi'i ulama' and some Sunni ulama' hold that this verse-especially the words: 'Such wives as you enjoy (istamta'tum)'-refers to the permissibility of mut'a. The Shi’a present several arguments to prove this point.1 This verse was revealed towards the beginning of the Prophet's stay in Medina, which lasted from AH 1/CE 622 to 10/632. At that time the men of Medina used to 'seek enjoyment' from women for a limited period of time in exchange for a specified sum of money. By its revelation this verse in effect confirmed an existing situation; and it emphasized that men must fulfill their promises concerning the agreed upon sum. In Medina this custom was looked upon as one kind of temporary marriage and was referred to by the term istimta', the same word employed in the Qur'anic verse-even though the literal meaning of the word is 'to seek benefit' or 'to take enjoyment'. Hence the meaning of the Qur'anic verse must be understood in terms of the conventional usage of the time, for as is well known in the science of Qur'anic commentary and Islamic jurisprudence, the Qur'an follows the conventional usage of the people in all statutes and legal prescriptions. If someone wants to understand a word in the Qur'an in other than the conventional meaning of the time, he must supply a strong reason for doing so. There is no equivalent for misyar as this is a concept that was made up long after the death of Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) and the first generation of Muslim. This concept was made up in reaction to a social problem (i.e. the increasing prevelance of illegal relationships amoung muslims) but at the same time, the ulema who put forward this idea didn't want to mention mutah because it is associated with Shia, who they consider not legitimate, even though it is a solution to this same problem, it is mentioned in the Quran, and was practiced by first generation of Muslims. As far as injustice to women goes, mu'tah is marriage, so it must be practiced within the limits of marriage. Also, there are many verses in the Holy Quran which forbid doing injustice to anyone, this includes women, so a mu'tah relationship is not exempt from this and this relationship must be conducted within the general principles of the religion of Islam and the general principles of marriage. About Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) and Imam Ali((عليه السلام)), there is no solid evidence that I have seen that they practiced mu'tah. They had multiple wives, but these were permenant marriages. As for why this is, I don't know. At the same time, we can't assume that because they did not do it, that it is not allowed because like I said before, it was allowed in Quran and practiced during the time of Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) and before the time of Rasoulallah(p.b.u.h) (as this was a common practice amoung the Arabs at the time), Islam only came to put limits on the practice that made it conform to the morals of Islam and in this way it is similar to how Islam made permenant marriage conform to the morals of Islam. Mu'tah has conditions and it can be wajib, mustahab, mubah, makrooh, or haram depending on the individual muslim's circumstances. There are many hukm and fatawa from our marjaa' connected to this topic, and I think you should get familiarized with this before making a judgement regarding the practice. Also, just because there are some who misuse Mu'tah as an excuse to do corrupt things, that does not mean the practice as a whole is a negative for society, otherwise Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) would never have allowed it.

You need to make a distinction between Jews and Israeli Jews and this is the main problem with your assertions in this post Israeli Jews are by definition Zionists since the voluntarily moved to a Zionist state. This doesn't apply to those who were born there ( because you don't choose where you are born) but the vast majority came there from somewhere else. So the vast majority of Israeli Jews are Zionists. Yes I would accept that statement. However Most Jews live outside of Israel. They choose to not go there even though the govt of Israel makes it so easy for them to do, gives them free healthcare, college, housing, etc. Yet they choose not to go. So I would say the majority of Jews outside of Israel are not Zionists. Like others have said, the majority of Zionists are Evangelical Christians, not Jews, and this is a well known fact

I don't know if I would call him a hero, but he's an independent thinker. He's a conservative, but not MAGA, and he has some original ideas. He's an actual journalist, and not a propagandist for Trump and the Zionists like most other conservatives who claim to be journalists.

The water just needs to come in contact with all the parts for wudu. Soaking is not necessary. Some people soak because they are paranoid, like 'Oh maybe there is one millimeter of skin that the water didn't come in contact with'. There is not need to do that, and this thought is the waswas (of Shaytan), so feel free to ignore it and actually you should ignore it.

Not checking is not the same thing as willfully doing it the wrong way. I am not saying it is good to 'not check' and as muslims, we should always strive to increase our knowledge of religion, but it is not the same thing. 'Not checking' does not invalidate your wudu and thus your salat, like I said before, so long as you had the correct Niyyat and did your wudu based on the knowledge you had at the time, which you presumed to be correct. We are only held accountable by Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) for the knowledge we have, not the knowledge we don't have. Salam.

Salam. The only time ibaddat is not accepted by Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) (and wudu is one of the acts of Ibadat) is when it is done incorrectly, on purpose. In other words, incorrectly even though the person knows the right way to do it. It is also not accepted if it is done for anyone or anything else other than Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى), i.e. with the Niyyat of Qurba (seeking nearness to Allah). Neither of these apply to you, because although it was incorrect, it was not done that way on purpose. Because it was not done with the intention of doing it incorrectly, it was sahih (good and acceptable). Obviously, now that you know the correct way, you need to do it the correct way. This goes along with the general rule in Islam that you are rewarded based on your intention (Niyyat), not based on the act itself. If your intention was good, i.e. your intention was to do it the correct way based on what you know, it is acceptable to Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى), even if what you know is actually incorrect. The main thing is the good intention, and this is the thing that pleases Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى), not just the act itself. In brief, the reason why wudu is done with the wiping in one motion is for two reasons. First, in order for the wudu to be correct, the water must come in contact with all of the skin and hair in the area you are making wudu in (i.e. the arms from the elbow to the fingertips, the top of the feet, the face from the hairline to the chin). If you splash the water, there is no guarantee that the water will come in contact with all of this area, as water splashes randomly. Second reason is to accomplish this by using as little water as possible. You could take a hose and pour water onto these areas, but this would be a waste of water, so going against the general idea of wudu, which is to conserve precious resources, like water.

If you're looking to rent for a cheaper price, I would say look in Garden City around Ford and Inkster Road, but north of Inkster between Ford and Warren. It's not subsidized but cheaper and crime in that area is not bad and you have the benefits of being next to the Dearborn Heights area without paying the expensive rents of Dearborn Heights. If you go south of Ford on Inkster it gets more ghetto as you get closer to Michigan Ave. So stay North of Ford Road.

I will also say that. I have a much better understanding of the 'Arab Street' or 'Arab Community' and what they think vs anyone in Washington D.C. most of whom are either ignorant or deluded with their own fantasies about the Arab world. As many of you know, I have been to the Middle East for extended periods on several occasions. Also, I reverted into the Arab community and have been in the community for more than 20 years. I live in Dearborn (which is majority Arab American) and my wife and in laws are Arab. I am not talking from nothing. I have yet to meet an Arab who, when they talk frankly and truthfully, (and they have no reason to lie to me since they know me, I have been around, and I am not connected in any way with the US Govt) will have anything positive to say about Zionism or the Israeli government. You have ignorant Arabs, just like you have ignorant people of every nationality and there is a tendency amoung the ignorant ones to make their opinions about Zionists 'spill over' into general opinions about Jews. This is a minority, IMHO, and in my experience, and the majority want to actually find a way for Muslims and Jews and Christians to live together in the ME /West Asia in peace and all have security and a good life and this is what is was like for long stretches of history in that region and they are aware of this. This myth that Muslims and Jews hate each other inherently and have always been fighting is a lie that is propagated by the Zionists in order to convince the ignorant masses in the West that they need to support the Zionist cause. It is propaganda and it only exists because most Americans and most 'Westerners' have very limited experience with Arabs or Muslims, and many of them have limited experience with Jews also because Jews, despite their oversized influence (no they don't control everything but have more influence than their numbers suggest) are only about 5 to 6% of the population. Going back to my first point, what unites Arabs is their loathing and hatred for the concept of Zionism and anyone or anything that is associated with this vile and racist concept. Like I said before, most realize that this has nothing to do with Jews or Judaism and is a secular political philosophy which has actually nothing to do with religion. The Abraham Accords are an attempt by the colonialist 'West' and it's backers to codify and legitimize Zionism and this is exactly why it will never work or happen outside of some extreme scenario, like them nuking the ME and completely obliterating the population and bringing in settler colonialists from somewhere else in the world. Thankfully, I think this scenario is very, very unlikely for obvious reasons. What you are seeing now is the 'spilling over' of the truth about Zionism to the rest of the world outside the ME / West Asia. It is this fact that I think even decreases the possibility of something like the Abraham Accords even further and actually, I believe, is a harbinger, like a 'canary in the coal mine' for the end of Zionism all together, InShahAllah. I would also like to say, and most of you already know this, that the vast majority of Zionists are not Jews (they are agnostic / atheist or claim to be 'Christian') and the majority of Jews are not Zionists. New York has so many Jews that if a a majority, or at least a sizable minority of them wouldn't have voted for him, he wouldn't have won.

If you're walking, it's better to go to the majma. There's really nothing within close walking distance of the Big Mosque on Ford Road. There's alot of restaurants and shops within walking distance of the Majma. Dearborn / Detroit area has really horrible public transportation. There is very few buses and they are almost always late. The Big Three Auto companies are here (Ford / GM / Chrysler) and they want people to buy cars, lol, so they put pressure on all the surrounding cities not to fund public transportation. If you don't want to rent a car, better to take an uber to a central location, like Warren and Schaefer Rd or Ford and Beech Daly and just walk around from there.

While this might be one of their plans, I think it is highly unlikely the Abraham Accords will go anywhere. Yes, it is being pushed and promoted by Trump, Kushner, MBS, Various Arab family dictators, etc, but that doesn't mean much. They have been trying that for more than 50 years with no real result. The Abraham accords have been tried and had different names at various points in History like the Camp David Accords, etc. MBS and the Arab family dictatorship are playing a game with the US / Zionists. The Arab dictators want the US / Zionists to keep thinking that they are 'trying their best' to implement and sign the accords and get their people to go along with it. They do this so that they can keep getting money from the US and military support to stay in power. They are playing on naive notions of the US that they 'Arab Street' actually wants to have relations with the Zionists, when in fact the Arab Dictators know that their people do not want this and will never accept it, no matter what they say. The Arab dictators are telling the US what they want to hear, and then every time the US pressures them to actually 'do something' to implement the accords, they say 'well the people will only accept if...' then the if is a condition that they know the Zionists will never accept (like making a Palestinian State based on 1967 borders), the Zionists reject it, then they 'go back to the drawing board' which then gives them more time to 'milk the cow' and to get more money and stay in power. It is like an endless loop which I don't think will ever resolve itself. This has been going on for decades now. The only way I think this will ever change is either if they forget about this plan, or a US President or Congress actually pushes them to implement the accords and they actually try to and sign something with the Zionists. Then there will be a popular revolution and they will be overthrown and flee the country like bin Ali did in Tunisia.