90% of Life is Reactions

Life is 10% of what happens to me, and 90% of how I react to it.

                                                                  - John Maxwell

Playful Life

Life is a monkey that swings poop at you.

           - Lisa Schwartman on CBC-DNTO

Minds are like Parachutes

Minds are like parachutes. They need to be opened to work.

                         - Anonymous (heard in CBC-Spark)

Eid al-Adha and the Hajj, 2009

Beautiful collection of photographs by Alan Taylor

"Today, November 27th, marks the beginning of 2009's Eid al-Adha, the Muslim "Festival of Sacrifice", commemorating the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son to God. Muslims around the world will celebrate by slaughtering animals to commemorate God's gift of a ram to substitute for Abraham's son, distributing the meat amongst family, friends and the poor. Eid al-Adha also takes place immediately after the Hajj, a pilgrimage to Mecca that is a pillar of Islamic Faith. Some 2.5 million Muslim faithful from all over the world descended on Mecca this year, many encountering an unusual occurance: heavy flooding due to recent torrential rains. Collected below are photographs from this year's Hajj and observance of Eid al-Adha."
________________________________________________

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/eid_aladha_and_the_hajj_2009.html?s_campaign=8315

A man is silhouetted along with his camels after they were brought to an animal market to be sold in Lahore, Pakistan on November 24, 2009, ahead of the Islamic Eid al-Adha celebrations. (REUTERS/Mohsin Raza)

Unhappy Moments

‎Dwelling on any unhappy moment in life is like channel surfing through a thousand possible TV shows, selecting the one that troubles you the most, and then blaming your TV set for the pain you're feeling.

- ‎‎‎‎‎Ahmad Shawqi El-Behery‎‎‎‎‎

Eid al-Adha Mubarak

The festival of Muslims, Eid al-Adha, is marked by slaughtering an animal, following the footsteps of prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) peace-be-upon-him.

The words we commonly use for this slaughtering of animals are Qurbani and Sacrifice. Lets take a deeper look at these words and see if we can get some lessons from this ritual.

The word Qurbani is from the root Q-R-B in Arabic meaning 'to come near'. Hence 'qurb' means nearness, and word 'qurban' following the the same pattern as in Rahman, means 'to come very close'. Qurbani, therefore, is a way to come very close to someone.

The word Sacrifice is from the word sacré in French meaning 'sacred'. Hence to 'sacrify', following the same pattern as of verb solidify, means 'to make sacred'. Sacrifice, therefore, is a way to make something sacred.

Both words in non-literal sense mean to give up something to attain something of a higher value. The two words of two very different laguages point to the same direction: you have to be ready to give up things you are attached to (material, ideas) in order to attain closeness to someone dearer and to make your bond sacred. This idea is amplified (and ritualized) in Creator-creation relationship, but holds equally true in every person-person and person-ideal relationship.

iota

For those who think "Life is as complex as sqrt(-1)". You can simplify your life by replacing sqrt(-1) with 'i' (iota).

- Muhammad Awais Humayun (friend)

Gumption

Learned this excellent new word today: Gumption

Definitions of gumption on the Web: (copied from Google search)

• common sense: sound practical judgment
• backbone: fortitude and determination; "he didn't have the guts to try it"
  wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
• Courage, also known as bravery, will, intrepidity, and fortitude, is the ability to confront fear, pain, risk/danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. ...
  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gumption
• Energy of mind and body, enthusiasm; Boldness of enterprise; initiative or aggressiveness, guts; spunk; initiative
  en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gumption

Ex: It took me gumption(initiative) to start this blog, and therefore I am grateful for your gumption(determination) to read it! :)

Have some candles handy

I learned that no matter how miserable I feel, just a single thought is enough, like a candle, to brighten the world.
Question: why not always keep those candles handy?!

- yours truly.

Mindfulness @ Google

Jon Kabat-Zinn tells about Mindfulness Meditation to Google employees.

Getting Things Done - by David Allen

David Allen explains GTD:

Reinventing fans

A revolutionary design for fans: without blades!

Sinking Ship

If your ship is sinking, don't care about where its pointing.

                                                               - David Allen

Habib Jalib - Poetry of Defiance

Excellent political poetry of Habib Jalib (with English translation) sung by himself.

A Charter for Compassion

A great scholar of our time, Karen Armstrong, talks about Compassion
in context of world religions, especially the three Abrahamic ones.

Shallowness

Shallowness is a manifestation of Materialism in one's own self.

                                                                - yours truly.                

An American Who Speaks Urdu

He speaks without mixing it with English words.

Global Ramadan 2009

This is an excellent collection of beautiful pictures around the theme of Ramadan around the world... A must see!

Ramadan 2009

In Muslim nations and regions around the globe, this is the first week of the holy month of Ramadan, a time for followers to abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and sexual activity during the day, breaking their fast each sunset, with traditional meals and sweets. During this time, Muslims are also encouraged to read the entire Quran, to give freely to those in need, and strengthen their ties to God through prayer. The goal of the fast is to teach humility, patience and sacrifice, and to ask forgiveness, practice self-restraint, and pray for guidance in the future. This year, Ramadan will continue until Saturday, September 19th. (39 photos total)

DAWN.COM | An Italian in love with Urdu

DAWN.COM | Entertainment | An Italian in love with Urdu

Born in 1977 in Taranto, a port city in southern Italy, Prof Bon teaches Urdu language and literature at the Universita Degli Studi Di Napoli L’Orientale, or the oriental university of Naples. He also teaches a course on Hindi language and translation at the University of Macerata.

‘Phonetically it feels so pleasing to listen to Urdu. I’m not degrading any other language, but Urdu sounds like music to my ears.[...]'

Update re: An unlikely Indian admirer [of Mr. Jinah]

Jaswant Singh has been kicked out of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, one of India's major political radical) for his praise for Mr. Mohammad Ali Jinah in his latest book. See the DAWN.com column.

Luck

Some people make more luck than others.

           - Seth Godin on CBC-Radio's Spark

Internet of Things

The "internet of things" is a concept that describes a wireless network between objects. In a way, it parallels the current network of addressable web pages (aka the "world wide web"), except "the internet of things" would include addressable inanimate objects that could be anything from your home's refrigerator to the shoes on your feet. Although this world of web-connected things has been much discussed for years, we've seen little movement pushing the concept forward. At least, until now.

Check From 5 Companies Building the "Internet of Things" Check out the cool stuff possible with RFIDs.

DAWN.COM | An unlikely Indian admirer [of Mr. Jinah]

DAWN.COM | Columnists | An unlikely Indian admirer

Did he believe the common Indian lore that Jinnah hated Hindus?
‘Wrong. Totally wrong. That certainly he was not … his principal disagreement was with the Congress Party. He had no problems whatsoever with Hindus. I think we have misunderstood him because we needed to create a demon … we needed a demon because in the 20th century the most telling event in the subcontinent was the partition of the country.’

Jaswant Singh said had Congress accepted a decentralised federal country then, in that event, a united India ‘was ours to attain.’ The problem, he added, was Jawaharlal Nehru’s ‘highly centralised polity.’
He said: ‘Nehru believed in a high centralised policy. That’s what he wanted India to be. Jinnah wanted a federal polity. That even Gandhi accepted. Nehru didn’t. Consistently he stood in the way of a federal India until 1947 when it became a partitioned India.’

Hence proved that Nehru and Patel were the true villains, not Jinah or Gandhi.

Call | Answer

I went for Umrah (lesser pilgrimage to the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah) past week. This poem is thoughts from that journey.

A call that came from the bottom of my heart
To go to a journey, alone and free
Explore my fancies, meet my demons
Before I do this new life's start

I thought and I doubted, if its indeed a Call
it took much time to realize
that answering this call is crucial
I must take this call, as the risks are small

When I reached the Haram, and witnessed the shrine
Emotions rose and eyes brimmed
All this time of facing you O Kaaba
Now my eyes can call you mine

I circled you, seven times, running and walking
Imitating electrons around nucleus
Or planets around their star
Serene, the mind had stopped talking

Your beauty was breathtaking and majestic
Shrouded in black
Printed with gold
People from around the globe, felt so domestic

Bismillah and Allaho Akbar, they were chanting
Intimate prayers
Emotional pleadings
Rubbing of shoulders, sweating and panting

I tried to draw closer, but didn't push too hard
Just one touch on the shroud
Just one kiss to the Black Stone
Some were successful, most shunned by the guard

As I finished the circling, and headed to Saee
Tribute to a woman
Seven rounds of love
A dance in sacred ecstasy

I later went to Prophet's Madinah
Oasis of kindness
Extension of holiness
People were nice in every arena

The Prophet's mosque as I saw
A pure object of beauty
Every inch was perfected
Spiritual vibes to make the hardest heart thaw

This was my short visit to The Two Holy Places
Answer to a call
Reality of a dream
May they be seen by many other faces

Umrah 2.0

I am leaving for Umrah (or Omrah) today, inshaAllah.

With no idea how do perform it, i resorted to Internet.

There I learned how to tie Ihram (uniform) with a guy from Turkey:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zSO70ZgE5o
Checked where my hotels are in the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah
in Wikimapia: http://wikimapia.org/540788/Mubarak-Golden-Hotel
I explored the holy shrine (Masjid Al-Haraam) at a virtual site in
SecondLife: www.SecondLife.com

These days even the acts of worship are made convenient, thanks to
technology. Though its my first time going for a pilgrimage, i call it
Umrah 2.0

Flash Mobs

Time Stops for a Flash Mob in Madrid

Flash Mobs are cool art projects done in public places, performed over a very brief period (a few minutes!) by complete strangers. They are organized through the Internet (social networking websites). People participating in a Flash Mob usually gather at a public place, like a street, metro station, market; and do some wacky stunt which attracts people's attention (and sometimes media's too). Purpose: having fun.

Author and journalist Bill Wasik is the originator of Flash Mobs phenomenon.

In the Lanes of Knowledge - A poem*

Musa was walking down the lane of knowledge
To be trained by God, not any ordinary college

With Yusha ibn Noon, a young helper boy
Who shared with Musa all moments of trial and joy

Musa told Yusha i'll walk until two rivers meet
Not worrying or tiring, as the journey is bitter but sweet

They stopped by a stone to take some rest
But the fish in their bucket decided to jest

It jumped out and made its way to the river
Yusha when he saw it, his spine got a shiver

He forgot to tell Musa, rather Shaitan advised him so
For if he were to tell it, it would rise Musa's brow

They continued walking after, until Musa felt hunger
"Bring out that fish!", he told to his younger

Yusha told him of the fish and how he did forget
Musa exclaimed, "hey! thats the sign we needed to get!"

They walked back to the stone where they had rested
Sharing stories of nations that were gifted and tested

There he met Qhizr, a man of knowledge and poise
Exclusive knowledge from God, to see what all implies

"Teach me from your knowledge; and follow you if I may?"
"You will find me patient and I wont disobey"

Hesitated and negotiated, but Qhizr did agree
"Just dont question me on what I ought to decree"

They started their journey and soon they hired a boat
Qhizr made a hole in it so it would hardly float

"Why you damaged the boat? you want us to drown!?"
First complaint of Musa, and Qhizr gave him a frown

"Didnt I tell you, you wont be patient with me?"
"Sorry that I said so, I'll make no more plea"

They went further till they met a young boy
Qhizr killed him, making Musa further annoy

"Terrible thing you did!" Musa exclaimed again
Qhizr frowned as before, but Musa promised to abstain

Entering a small village they were hungry and drained
They asked the villagers for food, but no one entertained

Qhizr noticed in the village a wall
He fixed it as it was about to fall

"Shouldn't you have taken food for this service's reward?"
Too much for Qhizr, he now was ready to depart

"Come, i'll tell you the reasons behind my actions
Actions for which you couldn't control your reactions

"The boat belonged to poor
but their king was very cruel

"I made a hole in the boat that its owners can repair
therefore of the boat's value, the king wont be aware

"The boy's parents were good, but he himself was wretched
That God replace him with a good one, is not so far fetched

"The wall belonged to orphans and hid their father's savings
Fixing the wall prevented the villagers' misbehavings

"All this I did with none but God's Will
He uses me to have his orders fulfill"

Astonished Musa learned: with all distress is glory
'God Knows Best' is the moral of this story!

* my debut poem. Based on a story of Prophet Moses (p.b.u.h) in Quran (Al-Kahf/The Cave)

Mixing Oil and Water, or Building Bridges?

A beautiful example of a human bridge between the two faiths:

Shortly after noon on Fridays, the Rev. Ann Holmes Redding ties on a black headscarf, preparing to pray with her Muslim group on First Hill.

On Sunday mornings, Redding puts on the white collar of an Episcopal priest.

She does both, she says, because she's Christian and Muslim.

Read more...

Voyage of Discovery

The only real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.

                                                                  - Marcel Proust

Canada's Next Great Prime Minister

Canada's Next Great Prime Minister

http://www.cbc.ca/nextprimeminister/about.html

A good leadership building and leader-hunting program.

 

Happy Square-Root Day

Today is the auspicious Square Root Day : 03/03/09 (3 x 3 = 9)  :-P

There are only 9 such days in a century.  :)

One-Organism Ecosystem

Deep under the surface of earth, in a gold mine in South Africa, scientists have found an organism that completely lives on its own! It does not depend on any other organism in its environment for food and survival.

In the solid rocks as deep as the height of CN Tower multiplied by 6, there are fractures where water got trapped for millions or probably billions of years. In those waters, there is an organism that lives on hydrogen and eats sulphur. It doesn't need even sunlight to survive.

Opportunity becomes Obligation

Once you realize it, its no longer an opportunity, its an obligation.

           - Seth Godin on Spark

Leaders of Status Quo

No one needs a leader that wants to defend the status quo.

           - Seth Godin on Spark

Charisma and Leadership

You don't lead because you have charisma. You have charisma because you lead.

           - Seth Godin on Spark

Speed Painting

Very cool Speed Painting of John Locke from LOST (my favourite TV show that I never watched on TV) - by Nico Di Mattia

Pinching Pennies

There is a story on CNN about an interesting hobby a family has adopted...

Barbara came up with the idea to collect "found" money in 2005, dismayed that people kept walking past money on a hallway floor at her college.

"I was in school, and I saw seven cents on the ground, so I said, 'Let me pick this up and let me start blogging it.' Now, all of a sudden, its been 3½ years, and it's almost $1,100."

Barbara then updates her blog, www.changepot.blogspot.com , with a brief posting about where the money was picked up.

Once they reach $10,000, the family says, they'll donate it to a charity, explaining that there's a karmic element to their collecting:

"Whatever the community gives you, you should help it when it's having a hard time and give back," 11-year-old Brianna stated proudly.

Lesson: you can invent your own hobby and not limit to well known trodden paths.

Song for Gaza

The best answer to their brutalities...

You can burn up our mosques and our homes and our schools 
But our spirit will never die 
We will not go down 
In Gaza tonight 

  by Michael Heart http://www.michaelheart.com/Song_for_Gaza.html

3 years, and counting!

This morning when I logged on to my computer at the office, I saw the date: Feb 2nd, 2009. For some reason it ranged a bell but i couldn't figure out what's so special about it... my one year anniversary of coming back from a most memorable trip to Germany and Vienna, Austria? May be, but there was something that stirred some waves in my head.

Not too long after, i got a message on the messenger from Corina saying: Happy 3rd Anniversary at SAP!!!. Ahhh that was it! I suddenly felt happy on remembering this... 3 years passed, and passed so well!!

And how was she able to remember? because we started the same day and we kind of celebrate every year.

Story of a Darvish

Found this nice, true story of a near-death-experience:

Like a flash, my consciousness, or soul, or spirit, or ka, left my body. I was flying upward around the curved rim of the universe at an impossible speed faster than thought. I still had a body, but it was ethereal, light as a feather. I could see the small oval shapes of thousands of galaxies on my left as I sped past. A heartbeat later I was there. Read more...

Chips and Salsa

The Toastmasters club that we started in the company got its place in company's event-newsletter 'Chips and Salsa' (*):

SPEAKERS UNLIMITED
Speak in public...the task might sound easy, but the truth is...most of us are terrified at the very idea. Your colleagues used to be in the same shoes, until they joined the ToastMasters club, a renowned organization with myriads of corporate clubs around the globe. Every Wednesday at Labs Montreal, they gather to master the art of public speaking using jokes, impromptu or prepared speeches, word definitions, comments and final evaluations. Not to mention the most important ingredient of all: fun. Ladies and gentlemen, the mic is yours! Toronto colleagues interested in setting up a club of their own are invited to contact                   or Faraz Anwar for more information.
> A few pictures - Contact person:                  .

The quotation in the headline says: "Hide not your talents. They for use were made. Whats a sundial in the shade?" (Benjamin Franklin)

(*) Names are masked out (empty spaces) to protect privacy

A Baby's Heart

A baby's heart is the most pristine and connected to its Source (s.w.t). Congratulations to ones who have such heart.

Sunlight of Today

It was a cold day outside but the sky was clear and the Sun was shining with its full glory. I was sitting inside behind layers of glass. The sunlight was warm.

Isn`t it strange that this sunlight is travelling all the way from Sun, hundreds of thousands of miles away, it passed through this freezing atmosphere, bounced from white snow, refracted from this glass door, reached me through my clothes and still gives me warmth!

Dinner for 10 program

Just saw an ad from Concordia University Alumni Relations. It talks about a great idea for networking and could be used in different  kinds of settings too. Here is how it sounds...

Like the Concordia Mentor Program, it's an opportunity to meet dynamic students and offer career guidance in a relaxed and informal setting. We'll match dinner hosts with students according to professional interests and study areas.

As a dinner host, you choose the most convenient day in the winter semester. We'll give you up to $200 to entertain five to 10 students for dinner, either in your home or at a restaurant of your choice. You may choose to serve a gourmet meal or order pizza!